Sonic the Hedgehog
by spinalTapSoundGuy
Summary: Inspired by the 1991 Genesis game. Dr. Ivo Robotnik has taken over all of free Mobius, and it's up to one brave Mobian to stop him; Sonic the Hedgehog. Thriller; rated T for language, explosive action violence, and frightening dangerous situations.
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

_The planet of Mobius, year 2991._

By the turn of the decade, the Aryan Empire was fast crumbling. Its leaders soon realized that there was not enough money to keep up with their military budget and feed their citizens at the same time. As the Empire fell apart, its prejudice against nonhuman Mobians died with it.

The largest opponent of the Aryan Empire was the United Federation of Mobius. Unlike the Aryans, the UFM championed inter-species cooperation. Many of the Federation's presidents spoke out against specism, prejudice against members of other species. These sentiments met with thinly veiled hostility from the Aryans, and soon the conflict between the two beliefs led to an arms race. Both nations extended their reaches across the globe, trying to persuade as many countries as possible to sympathize with their respective causes.

After decades of living on the brink of mutual nuclear annihilation, the Aryan Empire seemed to be losing its battle. Its leaders exhausted the country's resources as they struggled to uphold the belief that humans were the superior species on Mobius. However, after the disappearance of Josef Marx, the current Aryan emperor, all was lost. Nobody had the heart to take his place and, without a leader, the Aryan Empire finally crumbled by the close of the 2980's.

Many Aryan farmers remained in the country, still struggling to survive, supporting their families despite living in poverty and squalor. Others fled to the UFM, the largest free nation on Mobius, to try to make a new start. Unfortunately, many citizens of the Federation remained wary of past Aryan prejudice, and these newcomers were not to gain trust overnight…

-----

South Island was a large, crescent-shaped island a few miles off the eastern coast of mainland UFM. Located on a petroleum-rich seabed, the island's bay, Firestorm Gulf, opened out to the North, into the Oil Ocean. Beautiful green hills filled the northwestern area of the island, bordering Mobotropolis, which was further south. Lesser Mobotropolis, well known for its casino, stood across the gulf. A chain of volcanic mountains ran the length of the crescent, beginning at the outskirts of Lesser Mobotropolis and stopping at the southwestern corner of the island. The tallest of these, Mount Vulcan, towered threateningly over the island; it had erupted just eleven years before.

The tall skyscrapers of Mobotropolis glinted in the morning sunlight. Mobotropolis was the capital of the UFM, as well as its commercial, financial, and industrial center. Every defense contractor in the country competed for work in the city of Mobotropolis. The largest company by far in the defense industry was Ovis, which specialized in robotic defenses.

Ovis had vast facilities in Mobotropolis. On the outskirts of the city were several fenced-off acres of land, dedicated entirely to Ovis. Research and development labs took up several floors in the many giant buildings on the property. High walls surrounded the complex, and any unauthorized individuals attempting to climb the fence and see inside could be legally shot. After all, Ovis carried the nation in terms of defense.

Dishes around the complex pointed up into the air and scrambled the software of any overhead satellites, making pictures from above unattainable. The nearby international airport, out of which Ovis occasionally tested its new aircraft and UCAVs, had very strict departure and approach corridors, so that the facility itself would be in the passengers' blind spots if they arrived from the air.

-----

Dr. Ivo Robotnik waddled his way through the complex, painfully aware of the nervous, and sometimes hateful, glances in his direction. Nobody trusted him, as he had defected from the Aryan Empire not too long ago.

Robotnik grunted in annoyance as he reached his laboratory office and settled his obese frame into his chair. They had no reason to hate him; unlike many other Aryans, he had defected _before_ Marx had disappeared. He had pleaded his case to Leonard Auer, the president of the UFM, renounced all loyalty to the Aryan Empire, and taken a job at Ovis, vowing to do all in his power to work toward bringing the Aryan Empire to an end.

Since that time he had made outstanding contributions to the UFM. The nation had placed orders for hundreds of millions of robotic soldiers, conceived and designed by Dr. Robotnik. He had implemented cutting-edge technology into virtually every kind of military weapon, ensuring the UFM control over land, sea, and air.

_These people have no reason to mistrust me,_ Robotnik thought.

The door opened behind Robotnik and he turned to face the visitor. A majestic lion stood in the doorway. He stood about seven feet tall, and his brilliant golden mane seemed to radiate light. The lion strolled over to Dr. Robotnik.

"Why, Mr. President!" Dr. Robotnik exclaimed. "To what do I owe this unexpected pleasure?"

A friendly grin spread across the lion's face, and he chuckled softly.

"Ivo, you flatter me! Please, call me Leo!"

"Of course, sir. So, what brings you here? Do I have a special assignment? A design for a new weapon?"

"Oh, no, not quite. I simply came to you to tell you that you have been promoted. You are now Head Scientist of Ovis' Robotics division."

Dr. Robotnik assumed a very convincing look of utmost disbelief and incredulity; he had, in fact, been expecting this promotion for a while.

"Why, I'm simply speechless! I would be delighted to take on the job."

"Also, because of your outstanding devotion to the UFM, your contributions to us, and our desperate need for a replacement since the disappearance of our vice president, I have decided to invite you to take up the role. As you know, normally the role of vice president would go to our Secretary of State, but he refused to move up and insisted that you receive the role instead."

"Sir, I believe you have a deal! I will be in your office ready to serve you tomorrow!"

"Excellent!" replied Leo. His giant, muscular paw grasped Robotnik's pudgy hand and shook it in congratulation. As Leo turned to leave the room, Robotnik glowed with pride at his newly obtained seat of power.

* * *

**Many thanks to AspiringMythmaker, who is currently beta-reading my story. Great work so far, AM!**


	2. Catastrophe

**Catastrophe**

President Auer's secretary worked in Mobotropolis' tallest building, the Colossus Skyscraper. She arranged appointments between the president and other international diplomats. Her work station was a room just outside of Leo's penthouse office.

Leo must have had an important meeting today. He hadn't been out all morning, nor had he asked for anything. At first, the secretary put it out of her mind. But as the hours ticked by, she began to get suspicious, and wondered why Leo hadn't come out for lunch. Soon she decided to walk in and check up on him.

She walked up to the door and knocked. There was no reply.

"Mr. President? Is everything alright in there?"

Silence.

"Leo? Can you hear me? Please respond if you are able."

No response.

Dismayed, she tried the door. It was locked.

She walked back, and then ran at the door, concentrating all of her momentum into her shoulder. Aiming for the lock, she broke it and entered the room.

The room was empty. Leo was not behind his desk. A horrible stench of decay filled her nostrils, and it mixed with another pervasive, unpleasant odor. A haze seemed to hang in the air, making her eyes burn and water. The only sound was an ambient hiss in the background.

She looked towards the bathroom door. She had seen him enter the office. The bathroom was the only place he could be. Timidly, she walked up and knocked. There was no reply. She tried the handle and it turned. The door swung outward because weight had been propped against it; Leo's lifeless body fell and landed on the secretary.

The secretary screamed and wrestled her way out from under the body. Leo landed face down. A bullet hole was visible in the back of his neck. When she turned him over, an even more horrifying sight met her eyes. Blood trickled from slits on Leo's face, carved out to resemble whiskers. She looked down and saw a blood-spattered note clutched in one of Leo's hands. Trembling, she pried apart his fingers and read it:

"_Animal Filth. This is the price you pay for raping our glorious empire. You will all burn in Hell."_

Scrawled under the message was a silhouette of a four-armed, four-legged human, with its appendages sprawled out across a circle. It was an Aryan symbol. She turned the note over.

"_Look to the lavatory door and follow the wire."_

She looked to the door and saw a wire running over to a timer on the president's desk. It read fifteen seconds. She saw that it was a switch that connected another circuit. It led to a Jacob's ladder that had been placed on the desk. Then she realized what the haze and the pungent smell was; gas had been diverted into the office through a main.

Time slowed down as the secretary dashed out of the office. She escaped seconds before the timer hit zero.

-----

"And now, ladies and gentlemen, we have arrived at the economic, political, and financial center of Mobotropolis and, for that matter, of the entire UFM," the tour guide explained to the visitors. "The Colossus skyscraper was constructed almost sixty years ago and as you can see, it still remains, if you will excuse the pun, at the height of architectural ingenuity."

Predictably, the tourists chuckled. Harry Zapruder, a zebra, took out a camcorder and started filming, much to the sarcastic eye-rolling of his fiancé nearby.

"Despite its age, Colossus stands as tall and strong as it ever did, and its safety ratings are second to none."

A translucent fireball bloomed out of nowhere on the top level and then disappeared as quickly as it had materialized. Zapruder caught the entire thing on tape. For a moment, time froze, daring the silent, horror-stricken tourists to believe their eyes.

_BOOM_. As the sound finally reached the tourists, it broke them out of their silence. They milled around nervously, still in denial of what they had just seen. Then they saw thousands of light specks falling towards them; shards of glass glinting in the sunlight. A scream sounded from across the street, and the tourists fled the scene in a panic.

The spectacle set off a string of fender-benders as drivers stopped in the middle of the streets to gawk at the fire on top of Colussus. Officer Bill Griffith of the MPD radioed over to the Mobotropolis emergency center.

"Hey, whoever's on the line, we need lots of people over in Central Mobotropolis, now."

"Sorry, sir, we're understaffed, and we have to deal with an earlier call right now. We work on a first-come, first-served basis," replied a surly young emergency response worker.

"Damn it, you little punk, thousands of lives are in danger! Now listen. Colussus is burning on its rooftop. Send over every emergency vehicle you can spare! Fire control, medical response, rescue operations, and more police vehicles too! If you can take care of that sometime today, we'd appreciate it! Think you can do that??"

"Uhh, of course, sir. Right away sir."

"Thank you."

Griffith closed the radio link.

-----

Jonah Carver sat at his desk at MNN, the Mobotropolis News Network. He finished his lunch and his coffee and lit his afternoon cigar. An office worker burst into the room.

"Sir, I got a call from the city and it sounds like there's a crazy development going on."

Carver paused for a second.

"Well, what is it? What's going on? Why did you come bursting into my office? How dare you?? You're fired! No, wait, rehired, because I want to hear about this. Now answer me, or I'll fire you again!"

"Colossus is burning."

"Burning?? Good lord! No way! This is terrible! No! This is great! This is the greatest news story ever! What's our coverage right now?"

"Just some tourist named Zapruder."

"That's it?! What the hell do I pay you for?! Now I'll lose money to MBC! And guess what? That money is your wages! You're fired again! On your way out, round up some people and get our network out there! Send a chopper! No! Send two choppers! But wait! You can't send choppers unless you work here! You're hired again!"

"Thank you, chief!"

"No problem!"

Carver paused, expectantly.

"Well what the hell are you waiting for?! You want to get fired three times in five minutes?! Get going! Do your job! And get me some more coffee! Good coffee! Not the crap from the break room you served me for lunch! That's your coffee!"

"Yes sir!" The assistant sped out of the room.

-----

"This just in: a terrifying spectacle is unfolding at the Colossus skyscraper. Eyewitnesses reported that at approximately twelve thirty the roof of the building was engulfed in a massive fireball. As of now we do not know the fate of President Auer but for the time being, we fear the worst."

David Rose had just switched on the television set. He called over his wife.

"Lisa, I think you should watch this."

His wife sat down on the sofa next to him. She saw the story caption. She paled and put a hand to her mouth.

"Oh my god. This can't be real."

"We now go live to one of our Channel 54 choppers. What do you see, Frank?"

-----

Channel 54 hovered about one hundred feet from the building, level with the top floor. The penthouse was ablaze. A man in a suit and a red shirt addressed the situation.

"It is the most horrifying scene I have ever witnessed. I don't want to have to say this, but I just can't see how President Auer could escape alive. I'm separated from the fire by about a hundred feet of cold, high-altitude wind and I still feel singed. It looks like emergency responders are arriving now."

Far below, fire engines and ambulances were visible on the ground. A police chopper approached the Channel 54 chopper. A door opened and a policeman appeared, holding a megaphone. He switched it on.

"ATTENTION NEWS CHOPPER! THIS BLAZE IS CREATING UNSAFE AIR CURRENTS! THIS AIRSPACE IS NOW OFF LIMITS TO ANY NON-EMERGENCY AIRCRAFT. FOR YOUR OWN SAFETY AND SO AS NOT TO IMPEDE EMERGENCY RESPONSE, WE ORDER YOU TO VACATE THE AIRSPACE IMMEDIATELY!"

Frank turned to the pilot. "Ignore him. We need more footage. He can't do anything to us without endangering us."

The pilot nodded, even though the megaphone was still blaring at them.

"We need to slide left. There's a piece of rubble blocking the view."

The news chopper edged toward the police chopper.

"A little bit more. A little bit more."

"CHANNEL 54! DO YOU READ ME! VACATE THE AIRSPACE IMMEDIATELY AND FLY IN THE OTHER DIRECTION! YOU ARE TOO CLOSE!"

"No we're not," Frank said to the pilot. Indeed they were a considerable distance away from the other chopper. Unfortunately, Frank was not a helicopter pilot. He did not know that in addition to physical clearance, a helicopter must allow itself a wide berth so that it can correct if it encounters a sudden gust of wind. And sure enough, just as the policeman said, the blaze generated a blast of wind that caught Channel 54 off guard. There was not enough distance between the two choppers for either one to correct their position. The rotor blades of the news chopper shattered the police cockpit windshield, killed its pilot and policeman, and sheared off on the police chopper's sturdy metal skeleton. The skids of the two choppers got caught on each other, and without enough propeller radius to stay airborne, the news chopper lost altitude and started dragging the police chopper down with it.

Channel 54's center of gravity pivoted around the skids, and it swung upside down from the police helicopter. The police chopper swung from side to side dangerously and entered into a flat spin. Frank couldn't strap himself in fast enough. The centrifugal force ejected him from Channel 54 just over a thousand feet above the ground.

The engine of the police chopper strained to maintain altitude under the added weight of the news chopper. Its engine overheated and caught fire. The heat weakened the bolts that held the rotor blades onto the shaft. As their rotations slowed down, they flexed dangerously, buffeted around by the wind resistance. Finally the metal sheared, the rotors ripped off, and the two helicopters were no longer just losing altitude. They were plummeting.

Suffocated by the black smoke issuing from the console, and beaten mercilessly by the airframe, wind, and g-forces, the pilot of the news chopper, the last soul alive, died before the helicopters hit the ground. The firefighters and police on the ground saw them coming and frantically evacuated the street to save lives. It would have to be the lives of the people on the ground. Nobody could land a chopper without rotor blades.

The choppers hit the ground and exploded. Horrified bystanders were blinded by an enormous fireball that rose two hundred feet into the air, deafened by an earth-shaking _BOOM_, and singed by a horrendous wave of heat that overpowered even the sweltering, summer-afternoon temperatures. Smoking shards of metal rained down seconds later, along with smoking shards of other things. Organic things.

A few blocks down the street, a rescue worker found Frank. Had it not been for the shattered video camera, he never would have been able to identify who was scattered forty feet along Main Street.


	3. Traitor

**Traitor**

Frank's camera had been running all the way to the ground, feeding MNN live footage of his imminent demise. Horrified, yet unable to look away, David and Lisa Rose held each other close, as pale as death, as they watched the fall. Frank was screaming at the top of his lungs. The wind currents buffeted around the camera, but they could tell when Frank was a few seconds from the end. Snow filled the television set and static buzzed over the speakers. When MNN cut back to the news room, everybody on camera looked like they were either about to cry or to vomit. The news anchor started very weakly.

"We will… um… be back after these messages…"

A test pattern filled the screen. There were no commercials. The world had stopped.

Lisa stood up from the sofa.

"I'm going to the school to take Amy home. I don't want her there."

"Hey, wait," David replied.

Lisa paused. "What?"

"I'm coming with you."

-----

Amy Rose, a hedgehog of six, skipped out of class, glad at being checked out early. Her parents were there at the office to greet her.

"Hi, Mommy! Hi, Daddy!"

"Hi, Amy!" Lisa hugged her daughter.

"You ready to go home?"

"Yes. I'm ready."

-----

The Roses' blue Beetle convertible drove through a tunnel to the main part of the city.

"So, Amy," Lisa began. "How was your day at school?"

"It was okay, I guess. You got me out just in time; we were about to have a spelling quiz."

Lisa chuckled half-heartedly, wishing that a missed spelling quiz was the only trouble in the world.

"That's good, I guess. Everybody seemed to be doing okay?"

"Well, now that you mention it, I think something was bothering the teachers. After we came back from lunch, they were all pale and frightened, like something bad had happened. But they wouldn't tell us anything. It was probably teacher stuff like money and lesson plans."

"Yes. I'm sure it was."

David was about fifty feet from the end of the tunnel when he and Lisa remembered that they did not want to take this route home; they did not want to allow Colossus within Amy's field of vision. But they were too late.

Amy gasped. She first looked up at the smoking skyscraper, and then whirled to face her mother, asking silently: _This can't be real, can it? It's just an accident, right? And President Leo. He's okay, he survived, right? Right?_

Lisa stared back, and Amy knew that she desperately wanted to agree with her. But she couldn't.

A painful lump formed in Amy's throat, and tears welled up in her eyes.

-----

Everywhere in the UFM, families huddled around their television sets, dumbstruck by the terrifying events that had taken place hours ago. They awaited an address by recently appointed vice president Ivo Robotnik, who, because of Leo's death, would fill the role as president of the United Federation of Mobius.

At about nine o' clock, the MNN went live to a safe house in an unknown location, where Robotnik prepared to address the nation. He settled into a desk and began in a solemn voice:

"Citizens of the UFM, we have witnessed today an utter tragedy, one that I desperately hope will not be repeated. Though I have only known your country and your former president for a short time, I truly feel that I have come to understand your worries, your fears, your problems, and I am very sorry for these terrible losses.

"Unless I am very much mistaken, the entire nation is terrified right now. But I urge you, do not panic, don't lose your heads, because my dedicated cabinet and I are doing all we can to restore security and make sure that every citizen is safe.

"In order to further lay your fears to rest, I will disclose some of our conclusions as to the details and perpetrators of this atrocity. I am rather afraid that the answer lies in our own nation and its relationship with the now defunct Aryan Empire. I believe that some people in the Aryan Empire suspect this nation to be linked to the disappearance of their leader, Josef Marx.

"Bearing this in mind, I want to share with you information gleaned from a young secretary who was working for former president Auer; she has been our most reliable source so far. In hysterics, she told me that she found Leo's body; there was an Aryan hate note clutched in his hand. These facts have led us to conclude that this was an act of terrorism, committed by Aryan extremists. We also have reason to believe that Leo's killer or killers are still in this country, because I have temporarily grounded every single flight into and out of the country. We will not rest until these terrorists are caught and dealt with.

"In the meantime, I must ask all of you to stay in your homes. This atrocity will scar the nation forever, but we cannot live out the rest of our days in fear. We will unite against the forces of terrorism and evil. We will fight until we have eradicated hatred and spite from the planet. For we must always remember: united we stand, divided we fall."

-----

David switched off the television. The Rose family sat on the sofa, huddled in each other's arms. Amy's eyes were red. David broke away and stood up.

"Get packed," he said. "We're going to our country house."

Lisa protested.

"David, no, it's not safe out there."

"Trust me honey, I think we're in more danger here than we will be if we leave the city now."

"Robotnik asked us to stay where we were."

David looked around.

"Hey, Amy, why don't you go upstairs and read your favorite book."

Amy went up the stairs, and her parents resumed arguing.

"Lise, think about this for a minute. I just can't trust him. We have known President Auer for much longer than we have known Robotnik. And what's more, Robotnik comes from a very sketchy background. He was Josef Marx's biggest military advisor before he moved here."

"Yes, but he defected before Marx disappeared."

"I'm not convinced, honey," David replied nervously. "Does it strike you as odd that after our current vice president disappeared, our Secretary of State refused to succeed him, leaving the slot open for Robotnik? How did our other vice president even disappear? I don't seem to recall Robotnik ever having addressed that in his speech. It sounded like he was avoiding it."

"You're determined to assume the worst of him, aren't you?"

"Yes I am. He hasn't done anything to convince me that he's on our side."

"He singlehandedly overhauled our entire national defense system and provided the military with millions of new combat robots."

"So that's it??" David challenged. "That's the only thing a newcomer has to do to gain the trust of the nation? Lisa, who is the Commander in Chief for all of the armed forces?"

Lisa sighed. She hadn't thought of this.

"The president," she answered reluctantly.

"Exactly. He has legal command over the military. And now that we're all in a panic, it'll be that much easier for him to get us to go along with whatever orders he might be giving his troops!"

"David!" Lisa cut in. "Would you calm down? There is nothing to be afraid of, I promise you that!"

"I'm sorry, baby," David replied, "I'm not buying it. Robotnik designed all of these robotic soldiers; the software, the hardware, everything. Nobody has a more intimate understanding of their inner workings than he does. And that's dangerous. That potentially places approximately one hundred million loyal robotic soldiers at his command."

"Honey, they're not going to hurt us. Their loyalties are to the UFM."

"Open your eyes, Lisa!" David cried out, exasperated. "They're robots, for crying out loud! Loyalties be damned! They don't know anything about patriotism, they're just drones! They'll follow the orders of whoever is in control."

"I wish you could hear yourself, David! In case you haven't heard, Robotnik is in control now, and if he was good enough for Leo, then he's good enough for us!"

"Leo died! He died just after Robotnik entered our political scene! Don't you feel the least bit worried?? How would you feel if you were wrong? How would you feel if Amy's life was in danger because of Robotnik??"

David had struck a nerve. Lisa flared her nostrils and fixed him with a frosty glare.

"David," she began in a dangerous whisper, "I don't know what has come over you. You're usually a very calm and levelheaded man. I love you very much, but that was very insensitive of you to use Amy in your arguments. You want us to move? Fine, we'll move. We'll pack up our things and go. Then, we will return a few days later, and you will see that your paranoia and suspicion was completely unfounded."

David breathed a sigh of relief.

"Thank you, honey." David answered.

"I'm telling you, nothing's going to happen while we're away," Lisa asserted.

"We'll see."

"You're going to be wrong."

"Okay."

"You will look like a complete and utter fool for getting so nervous."

"Oh good, I can't wait. Can we go now?"

Within an hour or two, all of their possessions were packed into a panel van in their garage. David took the panel van, and Lisa took Amy in the car. They fired up the vehicles and soon they were off.

-----

Robots crawled through the deserted streets of Mobotropolis. Their master, Dr. Robotnik, had told them who was responsible for Leo's death. The robots now had to find them. There were a lot of people, according to Robotnik.

A troop of Crabmeat robots scuttled up the steps to a house. The leader raised a large metallic crustacean claw and banged on the door. A man opened the door.

_"By order of President Ivo Robotnik, you are under arrest for the murder of Leonard Auer."_

"What?! No! I never killed anybody! I make an honest living!"

_"You and all residents are to come with us immediately and without resistance. Any attempt to escape will result in your immediate termination."_

He motioned inside the house and called weakly.

"Um, honey, kids, we, uhh, need to come with these guys. Don't worry, I'm sure it's some kind of mistake."

He and his family exited the house with the Crabmeats, too frightened to talk.

-----

A vole in his middle ages woke up when he heard commotion from next door. He looked out of the window. He saw his neighbor being led to a black, windowless, armored truck by a team of Burrobots. He grinned to himself._ They finally caught the guy who did it!_ He was about to go back to bed when he could have sworn he saw a Burrobot pointing at his house. His blood turned to ice.

He quickly doused all of the lights in his house and raced down to the front door. He bolted it and then hid.

The Burrobots approached the next house. The leading Burrobot rolled up to the door on its caterpillar treads and knocked. There was no answer. Without a word, the Burrobot activated the giant drill mounted where its nose should have been. Within seconds it had bored a hole in the door.

The team of Burrobots crawled inside the house and spread out, searching for its lone occupant. When one of the robots found the vole, it signaled its comrades, and its team surrounded the vole. The leader addressed him.

_"By order of President Ivo Robotnik, you are under arrest for the murder of Leonard Auer."_

Stunned by this information, the vole was too distraught to put up any resistance as they dragged him out of the house and over to the armored truck that held his neighbor.

-----

Slowly and silently, a convoy of Motobugs rolled along a street. They resembled giant beetles, but in place of legs, each robot moved along on a single wheel. Inherently unstable, the robots offset the balance issues using the gyroscopic inertia of an inner flywheel that spun inside each robot's tire. A pair of giant, serrated, razor-sharp lances pointed ahead of it. The robot could vibrate these lances rapidly, causing massive damage to the target.

The convoy turned off of the road and onto a driveway in formation. They approached the door that was at street level. One of them rapped on the door with its lance. Two young boys answered it. They paled when they saw the Motobugs.

_"By order of President Ivo Robotnik, you are under arrest for the murder of Leonard Auer."_

The two stared at each other, dumbstruck.

_"You and all residents are to come with us immediately and without resistance. Any attempts to escape will result in your immediate termination."_

Terrified, the boys fetched their parents and they all walked down the steps to the armored truck that was parked waiting for them.

-----

A squadron of Buzzbombers floated regally over the city. These robots were about three feet tall and resembled hornets. Weapons could be mounted into their tails, where their stingers would be. These were heavy patrol Buzzbombers, and they carried tail-mounted Desert Eagle pistols.

The Buzzbombers descended upon the Rose house like a swarm of wasps that had found prey. The leader hovered up to the landing and rapped a leg on the door. There was no answer. The Buzzbomber hovered back and fired the Desert Eagle at the lock. It splintered, the door fell open, and the Buzzbombers all hovered inside.

Ten minutes of searching turned up no trace of anybody. That was not good. Unable to find anybody, the Buzzbombers exited the house and flew on with the armored truck.

-----

All of the armored trucks that had been patrolling the city converged at the central square, near Colossus. Robotnik was standing on a podium. Robots hustled the citizens out of the trucks and gathered them in the square. Motobugs and Crabmeats dispersed throughout the crowd, looking for troublemakers. Sharpshooter Buzzbombers hovered in the air, armed with tail-mounted sniper rifles. Swatbots, highly ranked robotic soldiers, maneuvered tanks around the perimeter of the area, making escape impossible. These humanoid robots formed the bulk of the Federal Military's Robotics branch.

Robotnik himself was not dressed in the usual lab coat he wore, nor was he dressed in any kind of suit and tie. He wore a one-piece body suit, like a pair of pajamas. The body suit had a red top and gray pants. A yellow stripe at the waist separated the top from the bottom, and another yellow stripe split the outfit down the middle, crossing the first stripe at a right angle. A black circle was at the junction between the two. He wore red boots and sported a new robotic left arm. A brilliant yellow cape flowed from his outfit. People stared at him in terror; he was wearing the traditional garb of an Aryan priest.

Robotnik twisted a whisker of his bright orange mustache and spoke to the crowd.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I am sure you are all wondering what is going on. The Federal robots, it seems, have accused you all of murdering dear former President Leo, and have brought you here for me to deal with. There seems to be some mistake."

Some crowd members started breathing sighs of relief.

"Unfortunately, however, there is no mistake. You are, indeed, all responsible for his death."

Shocked gasps and disgruntled murmurs arose from the crowd. The robots raised their weapons threateningly. As Robotnik continued, menace crept into his voice.

"Every last one of you is guilty. You killed Leo the day you sided with him. You killed Leo the day you animals dared to hope that you could ever be equal to a man like me!"

The crowd milled around nervously now. How could Robotnik have fooled them? He had defected and worked to bring down the Aryan Empire.

"It seems that neither the UFM nor the Aryan Empire is without its flaws. Both regimes were ruined by gross incompetence! I, however, will be the first to create perfect order, better than this pathetic Federation, and better than the Aryan Empire that I so despised. The sun will never set upon _my_ new Empire."

Confusion spread across the crowd. Many people thought that Robotnik was trying to reinstate the Aryan Empire by taking over the UFM. Did he actually despise his home country?

"As your president I am now issuing some executive orders. First, this government shall henceforth be known as the Robotnik Empire. Thus I am no longer a president for four years; I am now Dictator for life.

"Second, all jobs and occupations will be suspended. You have all been drafted into service for me. I will assign who is to do what. There will be no arguments or uprisings."

Robotnik produced a Luger from behind the podium.

"Dissidents," he shot the Swatbot to the right of him, "will be killed on sight."

Two Swatbots carried the limp robot out of sight and a new one stepped forward and replaced it as if nothing had happened.

"Third, this city is the new capital of the Robotnik Empire, and shall henceforth be known as Robotropolis.

"Finally, there will be no organic beings in Robotropolis save for myself. Everyone else will be taken down to the Ovis research and development center. There you will all be turned into robots, or as I call it, roboticized.

"These are the orders of your new and only dictator. Enjoy the new regime."

The badniks and the swatbots rounded up the crowd and herded them all towards the armored cars, bound for the roboticizer.


	4. Cocoa Island

**Cocoa Island**

Ivo Robotnik sat in a temporary office one floor below the burnt out penthouse of Colossus. Once his robots repaired the damage, he could move into the penthouse as the Emperor of the former largest free nation on Mobius.

He was at work typing up a draft for a new code of laws when somebody rang the buzzer of his door.

"Emperor Ivo Robotnik speaking."

_"Lord Robotnik. Swatbot R742ET requests entry clearance for discussion of a potentially important development."_

"Swatbot R742ET, clearance granted. Enter at will."

_"Enter at will, Swatbot R742ET."_

The door slid open and a Swatbot walked in and snapped a salute.

"At ease, Swatbot."

The Swatbot relaxed. Robotnik strode over to it.

"Alright. What is this important development you speak of?"

_"A small uncharted island has been located to the northeast of South Island."_

"…And???"

_"We would like to know what your plans are for taking it over."_

Robotnik stared blankly at the Swatbot for a moment, and then slapped the back of its head, as one does to somebody who has said something incredibly stupid or tactless.

"You idiot! What on earth makes you think I would want to waste my time guarding that tiny rock?!"

_"Because it used to be a military stockpile. There are tons of munitions and weapons hidden deep within tunnels and caverns under the island. There is enough to supply your army indefinitely."_

Robotnik paused and thought. His mood changed from annoyance and indignation to recognition of a valuable opportunity. A grin spread across his face.

"Ah, so that's why you want directions. Let me think."

The Swatbot waited obediently.

"Are there any inhabitants on the island?"

_"Only one, sir."_

"Excellent. Take a troop of Swatbots with you to the island and order that individual to leave."

_"Understood, sir. What do you want us to do if this islander chooses not to comply?"_

Robotnik rolled his eyes.

"Aren't you fools armed with napalm? Use your imaginations."

_"Understood, sir,"_ replied the Swatbot.

The robotic soldier saluted and walked out.

-----

The sun set behind Robotropolis harbor as six Imperial carriers underwent fueling, boarding, and arming. Teeming with soldiers, bristling with weapons, and loaded with fuel, a single carrier could maintain a military presence in virtually any port indefinitely. Six could obliterate the port within a matter of hours, level the surrounding city within a matter of days, and still have plenty of resources to move on. Even the Swatbots saw little sense in concentrating so much firepower on such a tiny little island.

Docked in Ovis's facilities, Swatbots horded onto the ships as dusk fell. Once all soldiers were accounted for, the six admirals signaled each other wirelessly, directly through their CPU's. The nuclear reactors that powered the ships activated, the turbines started, and the propellers began to churn the dark water. As darkness approached, each carrier lumbered out into the bay, and then, with all lights extinguished, turned north and set a course for Cocoa Island.

-----

A burst of static suddenly blared over the ancient transponder. A young fox rose out of his bed, walked over to it, and dialed down the volume. He had set it up years before, just for entertainment; he never actually thought it would pick up any kind of radio activity. Especially not here on Cocoa Island.

This islander was not stranded. At the tender age of six, he had set out for a new home and found this island. He realized that he liked it so much, he decided to stay. Nobody was likely to miss him. Even on the mainland he couldn't recall what his parents looked like.

The boy's name was Miles Prower, but his friends in the foster home had called him Tails, because oddly, he had been born with two tails. He had lived out all of his life in a foster home in Station Square, a city on the east coast of the UFM. He never knew his real parents, but he had good friends in the home, and the foster couple took very good care of them all.

Tails always loved technology, especially vehicles, be they cars, trains, ships, or aircraft. He tinkered with everything. At a time when many children were learning what kinds of things didn't belong in an outlet, Tails was learning what _did_ belong, as well as how these items could be used to make life much easier. He knew how to type, send messages, and browse the online military database by the age of three; he could write programs and diagnose and delete computer viruses by the time he was four.

Every summer, the foster couple would take all of the children to the public pool several times a week. Tails loved swimming so much, and he was fascinated by the water guns and water toys available. When he was five, he was so inspired that he built a small, one-seated submersible that carried its own oxygen supply and could allow the user to stay underwater indefinitely; he had stayed under for hours without running out of oxygen. He called it the Sea Fox. He still had it; he never would have found Cocoa Island without it.

The problems arose in 2989, when he was six. The foster home had fallen on hard times financially. Kind and caring to the end, the foster couple refused to let money problems impede them, and they made every sacrifice possible to make sure that their charges stayed healthy and happy. Unfortunately, they couldn't stave off the poverty forever, and before long, social workers started showing up and leading away Tails's friends one by one. Soon Tails was the only one left, but he knew that his time was coming. He decided that if he had to leave, he wanted to be in charge of his final destination. So one night he composed a note on the computer and taped the printout to the monitor. Then he loaded the Sea Fox into the red wagon and walked all the way to Station Square's white, sandy beach. Stocked only with some snacks from home, and guided only with a map, he hopped into the Sea Fox and set sail. He found Cocoa Island within a few days. He was starved by the time he finally made landfall. He hoped that the island had food on it, because he would die of starvation if he tried to go back. Fortunately though, Tails found food, shelter, and, quite oddly, the occasional machine part, which he would collect and use to build things when he was bored. After two years on the island, Tails was very wary of these new foreigners.

-----

The Imperial carriers slowly approached Cocoa Island shortly before six 'o clock in the morning. When they reached their destination they encircled the small island. The soldiers had picked up traces from a radio transmitter, so the flagship broadcast a message to the island.

_"Attention, unknown islander. This location is now under the rule of the Great and Honorable Lord and Emperor, Ivo Robotnik. We believe that there are valuable stores of ammunition hidden within this island. On behalf of our glorious ruler, we demand that you surrender and vacate this island. You are surrounded by six Imperial carriers, any one of which is capable of destroying an entire city in a matter of days. If you do not comply within six hours, we shall deploy our napalm and send soldiers to the island."_

Tails suddenly knew why he had found machine parts all around the island; he must have stumbled upon a defunct Federal military stockpile. He had no idea who this Robotnik character was, but he did not really care at the moment. All he knew for sure was that his home was surrounded by extremely dangerous enemies.

As the message sank in, Tails started to panic. What would he do? What _could_ he do? There was no way he would be able to fight off a horde of invaders. He had no choice but to get off the island and leave the weapons to be stolen. The island could potentially hold hundreds of tons of explosives, bullets, and nuclear warheads, and he would be powerless to stop the invaders from taking it all and using it to threaten and kill millions of people. Tails could not decide which would be worse: getting killed trying to defend the island, or living with the knowledge that his actions allowed the hostile forces to take the weapons and bring the UFM to its knees. He pounded the wall in frustration. There was no other way out.

Or was there?

What if Tails could find weapons and use them against the soldiers? Would it make any difference? Could he hope to stage a one-man war against a professionally trained army?

If Tails had been any older, he would have convinced himself that it was impossible, beyond a shadow of a doubt. But Tails was only eight, still idealistic and vigorous. He did not want to die anytime soon, but still admitted to himself that he would feel much better knowing that he had at least tried to keep Cocoa Island safe.

Tails held on to this shred of hope, and it helped him to calm down and think. No matter how aggressively the army attacked, they didn't have a chance of finding his house. It was too well hidden; he himself had sometimes had trouble finding it when he first arrived. If he needed to worry, it was about the rest of the island.

He looked fondly at a light blue gem that sat behind a thick glass case. The gem was called a Chaos Emerald. Tails had found it when he first arrived on the island. He didn't know much about it, but he always felt much stronger and more alert whenever he held it. It wasn't long before he discovered that it provided a perpetual source of electric power. He now kept it behind glass, in a special holder that transmitted its power to all of the outlets in his house. Perhaps the Chaos Emerald was also keeping his house safe and hidden from unwanted outsiders.

It took Tails a few minutes to realize that the radio was still broadcasting the invaders' message. He sat up and realized that if he was to stand a chance, he would need to know what the enemy was up to. He booted up an old computer he had found in a shed on the island. Next, he unplugged the speaker from the receiver and hooked the receiver directly into the computer. Then he opened a scanning program he had written and spiked the source of the broadcast, overriding the link control so that after the iterations were finished, his enemies couldn't terminate the signal. Now, Tails could listen in on the invaders as long as he liked and record all of their statements using his program. When he was satisfied with the setup, he put the program in standby mode and locked it. The program would record, filter, and sort every command issued by the outsiders. Tails could unlock the program and read the reports whenever he wanted to.

Tails paused for a moment and wondered when the best time would be to go out and search for weapons. Poloy Forest, the vast wood that surrounded his house, would undoubtedly be ablaze within hours. Ideally then, he would need to finish searching before the soldiers unleashed their load of napalm on the forest.

Tails descended a stairwell to the basement and opened up a reinforced steel chest that was full of grenades. He had always wondered how they had ended up on the island. He pulled a bandolier off of the wall and filled it with grenades. Tails was sure that the grenades would provide him with plenty of defense against any attackers.

With one last look at the computer to check the time, Tails locked up the house and stepped outside. Moving with urgency, he looked at his house one last time before disappearing into Poloy Forest to search for weapons.


	5. Blue Lightning

**Blue Lightning**

It was still dark at six o' clock the next morning. In the luscious green hills north of Robotropolis there stood a small cottage. It only had one occupant, and he was fast asleep.

The alarm clock went off and the cottager got up. He built a fire and showered. After he got out, he picked up last night's newspaper. It was the first edition printed under the Robotnik Empire, and it hailed and praised the newly appointed dictator, Dr. Ivo Robotnik. The cottager sighed. How could they not have seen it coming?

The young cottager surmised that since the hills were only a few miles north of the city, they would most likely be swept and searched for organic beings this morning. He wasn't worried about this. In fact, he hoped they would arrive soon; he was getting bored.

The lone occupant rummaged through his closet until he found his favorite sneakers. They were red, and each one had a white stripe across it. He stepped outside, preparing to go for a jog. He took one last look at the cottage and without a second thought, he rocketed off.

-----

The cottager watched from a distance as a lone Buzzbomber approached the house. As he waited, the robot looked in at the lights and the fire. The Buzzbomber fired its weapon at the lock and hovered in through the door. It had taken the bait.

Without delay, the cottager raced down to the cottage and crouched outside the bedroom window. He crept in, slid silently over to the nightstand, and pulled out a large golden ring. He was not exactly sure how, but he could always count on these rings for energy, strength, and mental alertness when he needed it. They also seemed to transfer strength to other objects. He slid the ring down the neck of an old acoustic guitar and silently crept out of the room.

The Buzzbomber was hovering with its back to the cottager. It stared around the living room in utter confusion, wondering why the signs of life it had seen had not yielded any living beings. The cottager maneuvered the guitar around, poised to strike.

"Yo, pest!"

The Buzzbomber whirled around. The blue cottager swung the guitar to the right and nailed the Buzzbomber's head. The robot crashed on its back. The guitar remained unscratched.

"Suck on _that_!"

_"Who dares to make a mockery of the glorious Robotnik Empire??"_

The cottager smirked down at it.

"Name's Sonic. Sonic the Hedgehog."

Sonic kicked the Buzzbomber's neck and snapped its spinal wire. The robot went limp. He then nonchalantly whistled to himself as he picked up three more rings on the counter and dashed out of the house. This Robotnik character had made a mistake. He had shown up, killing innocent people and demanding that they bow to his rule. Sonic had no desire to do so, and he planned to let Robotnik know by giving him hell.

-----

A group of Swatbots stood huddled together in a valley of the Green Hills. They had just received news that robots all over the Green Hill region were mysteriously being put out of action. Nobody seemed to know what was causing it. A virus scan revealed no malicious code in the Swatbots' mainframes, so they reasoned that someone or something was attacking their comrades. They decided to gather in a close circle, facing outward; they would now be able to see danger coming from any direction, and they had their arm-mounted laser cannons ready.

Before long, the Swatbot facing down the channel of the valley, out of the depression, saw something cut across its field of vision, traveling very fast across the distant flatter lands. Its only visual cue was the dust that the object kicked up. It quickly notified the other Swatbots, and they agreed that it was some kind of low-flying missile, which they would have to shoot down. They cocked their laser cannons and all aimed towards the mouth of the valley, waiting nervously for the missile to loop back.

The Swatbots all activated their radio wave sensors which they could use to lock on to the missile; the Swatbots had only seconds to shoot, and they couldn't afford to miss by relying on visual cues alone. Sure enough, another row of dust clouds rose up, this time in the other direction. The dust trail stopped moving laterally as the missile turned to face them. They leveled their cannons and waited for a radio signal.

They received no reading. The missile, strangely, was not emitting a radio signal of any kind; all guided missiles had to give off some kind of radio signature. That could only mean that this mysterious threat was… organic?? It didn't make sense. The Swatbots' depth perception radars were clocking the object at over three hundred fifty miles per hour. Finally the Swatbots decided to scatter. But it was too late; by the time they decided to react, their assailant was right on top of them.

-----

Sonic saw the Swatbots and accelerated, confident that the rings he had would allow him to survive the collision. He plowed into the front robot at almost four hundred miles per hour. He felt a hard, painful impact that knocked the breath out of him. But to his satisfaction, he looked over his shoulder and saw dozens of machine parts flying through the air behind him. He figured that the pieces would be scattered almost half a mile. Lowering his head, Sonic pressed on. Ten down, who knew how many more to go.

Blasting across the terrain, Sonic took advantage of every dip and swell in his path, using the momentum to launch himself into the air and get a better view of the area. He made for a long bridge that spanned a river leading out into South Island's gulf. As he was running across, a blur of an object jumped out of the water right at his head. He dropped his body to the boards and slid under it, narrowly avoiding decapitation. He got up cautiously, looking around. A splash sounded from the river and the object jumped up again. Instinctively, Sonic grabbed for it. He caught it by its tail and slammed it down on the bridge.

The mysterious attacker was a metallic, spiny fish that had rows of sharp teeth and whose body was at least as big as Sonic. Upon hitting the bridge, the robot shattered, and to Sonic's utter surprise, a live fish was ejected from the shell. It quickly flopped back over the edge and back into the water to breathe. It took Sonic a moment to register that Robotnik was encapsulating live Mobians to operate his robots.

Sonic picked up the head of the robot. He found on the inside a video screen and speakers. Looking further he noticed a needle of some kind. He also saw restraints in various places that connected to motors in the robot. Perhaps those restraints allowed the Mobians to control the robots.

Sonic began to wonder if there were more Mobians out in the Green Hills that had been forced into service by Robotnik. He racked his brain; he remembered owning a guide of the U.F. Military's weapons and robots when he was little. These robots all looked familiar to him because he had read about them back when they were in use by the United Federation. He tried to decide which kind of robots would be best suited for deployment in the Green Hills. He decided to look for Motobugs; they were small, agile, and well-suited for travel across the undulating terrain. He stood up and continued on his way.

-----

Trees shot past Sonic as he continued searching the Green Hills for all of the robots that were in the area. Soon, he spotted a pair of Motobugs travelling slowly along. The agile, beetle-like robots remained oblivious to Sonic's presence.

Sonic fell in behind them unnoticed. Then, he jumped up, curled his body into a ball, and started spinning. He landed with full force on the hindmost Motobug. The impact was enough to break open the shell and send Sonic bouncing right onto the second Motobug. When Sonic looked back, the Motobugs were in pieces, and two dazed looking Mobians squinted in the sunlight.

The one in the front, a dog, was holding his head, moaning in pain. Not knowing how to help him, Sonic looked over at the other Mobian, a rabbit in her early twenties; she also looked confused, but sane enough to talk.

Sonic walked over to her.

"Are you both alright?" he asked.

"Yessir, Lord Robotnik," she replied, confused.

Sonic merely stared at her in utter confusion.

"What? No, you don't understand. You don't have to worry anymore. I'm not Robotnik. You're not imprisoned anymore. You're free."

The young rabbit finally seemed to realize where she was.

"Oh, God! What happened here? How did I escape? Did you set me free?"

Sonic nodded.

"Thank you, so much."

"No problem! But if you don't mind, I need some information, if you have any."

"What do you want to know?"

"Well, I don't really know where to start… What's going on here, anyway?"

"Doctor Robotnik has taken over the UFM, and now I think he wants to extend his empire all across Mobius," the rabbit replied.

"What makes you think that?" Sonic asked.

"He's building an army. We've all been drafted. Robotnik started out with just Swatbots, but he needed more robots and he can't provide enough power for all of his badniks."

"Badniks?" Sonic asked.

"Those are the robots like Motobugs and Buzzbombers and so forth. Anyway, Robotnik has been modifying these robots into bionic shells; he rounded up everybody he could and now he has started putting some of us in these shells."

"What is he making you do?"

"Right now, all we've been doing is simply recruiting other Mobians. Once his army is large enough, I think he'll start commanding us to overthrow the mainland and take over many more nations."

"How exactly does Robuttnik control you?"

"The suits inject some kind of drug into us. I don't know exactly how it works, but it just… keeps us from resisting his orders. And it heightens our senses, too."

"So, your friend over there has become hypersensitive from the drug?"

The rabbit looked over at the dog.

"Oh, my god! Paul! Yes, all this bright light is bombarding his eyes. I thought it seemed pretty bright myself."

Sonic approached Paul. He whispered.

"Paul, how do you feel? Are you well enough to talk?"

Paul took his hands down from his eyes, wincing. He groaned.

"Where am I? Where is my comrade? Where is Flora?"

The rabbit approached them.

"I'm right here, Paul."

Paul looked up at her.

"Are you alright?"

Flora looked incredulous.

"Me?? Are _you_ alright?"

Paul dropped the question and looked over at Sonic.

"Who are you?" he asked Sonic.

"My name is Sonic."

Sonic and Paul shook hands.

"Sonic, I was one of the top robotic research scientists at Ovis Corporation of Defense. I know about the workings of quite a few of these robots. I don't know what you're thinking, though! There's millions more robots where these came from. I'm not sure what you think you can accomplish, but if you're not careful, it's only a matter of time before he finally crushes you. You don't seriously think you can resist Robotnik yourself, do you?"

"Oh, don't worry, Paul. I'll take care of these badniks, no sweat!"

"Wait! There's something you still don't know! These badniks and Swatbots will be obsolete soon; Robotnik has only to shift his paradigms and he will see a much more effective way to make robots of living beings."

"Such as?"

"I fear very soon that Robotnik will find a way to hardwire robotic materials into living flesh! No more will he have to worry about badnik shells being broken open. If he learns to integrate metal into flesh, then Mobian and robot will become inseparable. No military would dare attack them; Robotnik would put children on the front lines and dare his opponents to retaliate! That is why Robotnik must be stopped as quickly as possible."

"Okay, Paul. I'll keep that in mind. Do you know how many other badniks and Swatbots there are around here?"

"There aren't many," Paul replied. "Am I correct to assume that not many people live out here?"

"I wasn't even aware that there were other people out here. I live here, but I think everyone else lives in the city."

"Okay, so Robotnik wouldn't need too many robots out here. Let me think…"

Sonic tapped his foot impatiently, rolling his eyes while Paul was concentrating.

"I know for a fact that Robotnik sent fifty Motobugs. Five squadrons, ten Motobugs in each squadron, five pairs per squadron."

"Okay, so we have forty-eight more Motobugs to go. Anybody else?"

"There are Choppers patrolling the rivers. They look like piranhas."

"Oh, those little monsters. I had a run in with one of them not too long ago. I'm not sure how much I can help them. I'm not a very good swimmer. Any others?"

"Some Swatbots are out, but I think most of them are guarding the capsule somewhere in the Green Hills."

"A capsule?"

Flora spoke up.

"Robotnik placed all of the Mobians he doesn't need right now in temporary prisons. He set up several of them all around South Island. They're basically little command posts. I think you should consider trying to free them."

"Okay, Flora. Can you think of any other badniks that are around here?"

"I'm not sure, but I think Robotnik may have also sent out some sort of stealth badnik. I don't know too much about them. When they aren't in stealth mode they resemble lizards. Otherwise … they're, well, invisible."

"Invisible??"

"Yeah, they have some odd cloaking ability that makes them difficult to catch or avoid. You should be careful and watch for them."

"But, how, if they're invisible?"

"No stealth technology is perfect, Sonic," Paul replied. "Any small spot of haze, any patch of air that shimmers like a heat pool, use caution."

"Will do," Sonic replied. "Now, before I go, will you two be okay out here?"

Both looked very uneasy.

"I… I guess so," Flora stammered.

Sonic thought for a moment.

"Or, on second thought, would you two like to come with me? I think we can all help each other out."

They both agreed, relieved.

"Okay, this will be tricky…" Sonic mused.

After a few moments' pondering, Sonic finally found a way to carry them both. Paul held on to Sonic's back, while Flora sat in his arms. Sonic staggered a bit, but remained standing.

"Alright everybody, hold on to your hats. It could be a bumpy ride."

Sonic accelerated, and soon the three were miles away.

-----

Sonic was not used to the added weight, but he still managed a good two hundred miles per hour. He, Flora, and Paul searched the hills for about three hours. During that time, they had managed to track down and destroy almost forty more Motobugs since they had begun searching. Sonic stopped on a hill and set down both of his riders.

"What are we doing here?" Paul asked.

"We're gonna destroy the rest of the badniks the easy way," Sonic replied. "I'll bet there's some kind of tracker in all of these robots. If the remaining robots look at where their comrades went down, they might decide to investigate around here."

"And that's when we strike!" Paul exclaimed. "Genius."

Before long, the three spotted eight objects moving over the hills towards them. They were the remaining Motobugs. Sonic got ready to fight as the eight badniks converged on the hill.

In a flash, Sonic was off. As he ran, he dropped his head to his knees and rolled into a ball in mid-dash. Now he was rolling forward in a high-speed somersault. He turned and barreled straight for the right-most Motobug in the formation. He sent it flying, as well as the other seven, one by one. Dazed Mobians climbed out of each one.

Sonic turned to Flora and Paul.

"I need you two to tend to these guys and make sure they're all right. I'm going to find the capsule. I'll bring you over when I find it and decide it's safe."

Both nodded.

Sonic raced off across the hills.

-----

Sonic arrived at the edge of a small pond and looked around. He couldn't see anything amiss, so he listened closely. His ears pricked up and he grew very tense; soft, mechanical clanking noises were audible not far behind him. He turned around.

There was nothing behind him. But then, Sonic remembered something Paul had said about stealth badniks. His mind raced for a moment as he wondered what to do.

Sonic casually turned back around and bent over the muddy banks as if he was searching for something. Then, without warning, he ran his feet as fast as he could. He held himself in place with his hands; his feet, meanwhile, flung splashes of mud far behind him. After about fifteen seconds he turned back around.

The mud he had kicked up was now suspended in the air, forming outlines of reptilian-looking beings. These must have been the stealth robots that Paul was talking about. They may have been invisible, but the mud wasn't. It marked them like a crosshairs. And what was more, Sonic must have splattered their eyes; he watched with satisfaction as the "invisible" badniks repeatedly bumped into each other and tripped over their own legs.

When Sonic finished breaking all of the Mobian prisoners out of their badnik shells, there were about twenty Mobians, milling around in various stages of delirium. The more sane ones realized where they were and helped the others to safety. Sonic pressed on.

-----

Within ten more minutes, Sonic spotted the capsule from a distant hill. The large metallic structure was nestled in a dip, and two ledges rose up on either side of it, forming a channel. He saw ten Swatbots guarding it. The whole scene was merely yards away, but Sonic would have to take out the Swatbots to get to the capsule.

Sonic raced down the hill and tackled one of the Swatbots head on. The others immediately snapped into action. Red bolts of laser energy flew everywhere, scorching the air through which they passed, but Sonic evaded every single one as he took down one Swatbot after another. Machine parts littered the ground within two minutes.

As Sonic turned to the capsule, he heard a gruff voice behind him.

"You!!"

Sonic whirled around.

A small, elliptical craft hovered in the air, swinging a massive wrecking ball beneath it. The pilot was a livid, red-faced, fat man who had an orange mustache that resembled a pair of paintbrushes. He ground his teeth and pointed a robotic left arm at Sonic.

"You must be the little bugger who's been messing with my robots! Just who do you think you are?!!"

"Name's --"

"Silence!!!" Robotnik shouted. "I'll kill you!!!"

Robotnik hovered backwards, and then switched direction. The wrecking ball swung forward, right at Sonic.

Sonic snapped into action as Robotnik swung the giant wrecking ball his way. It barreled lazily past the place in which he had been standing a second earlier and hit a tree. The unfortunate tree splintered immediately. The ball reached the apex of its swing, and slowly but surely began to arc back to Sonic, in the other direction.

Sonic moved out of the way once again as the wrecking ball completed its next swing. Now Robotnik began to move the hovercraft in circles, making the ball gyrate and oscillate dangerously. It swept about in a wide, deadly circle. Tired of dodging, Sonic tried to think of how to bring down the craft. It wasn't long before he had an idea.

Sonic waited until the wrecking ball had swung around behind the craft and then quickly jumped onto the ledge in front of Robotnik. He jumped off of the ledge in a spin and hit Robotnik with pinpoint accuracy. Sonic heard a grunt of annoyance and saw the craft buckle slightly, but the weight of the wrecking ball stabilized the craft and kept it from moving around too much.

Sonic dodged the wrecking ball as it swung up over the ledge he was on. Quickly he leapt off and dashed to the other one. He soon jumped off of this one, however, because before he could make another attempt at damaging the aircraft, Robotnik had swung the wrecking ball at his ledge; the arc was almost fully lateral, and Robotnik had given it all the momentum he could. Sonic jumped off of the ledge and the wrecking ball embedded itself in the cliff behind. Loose boulders fell and settled on top of the wrecking ball, anchoring Robotnik to the cliff.

Surprised, and now very angry, Robotnik struggled in vain to free the wrecking ball from the rock. He didn't want to hit the release button and drop the wrecking ball; that would indicate his surrender to the impudent young rebel. No, he had to keep fighting, and he would continue trying to free his weapon even if it took him forever.

Sonic jumped up every few seconds, hitting the craft repeatedly. Each impact exacerbated Robotnik's rage as he tugged pointlessly at his embedded wrecking ball. Sonic jumped up yet again and grabbed hold of the craft. Robotnik slapped Sonic, who promptly responded with a punch to the face. Robotnik whirled around in his seat and swatted Sonic to the ground.

Desperate to maintain his reputation of invincibility, Robotnik kicked his thrust reversers up close to full power. The craft lurched backward and then stopped short, still anchored into the cliff. But now, the ball was beginning to move. Encouraged by this, Robotnik hovered forward again and reversed thrust for another, stronger tug. The craft still did not come free, but the wrecking ball was very close to breaking through. Robotnik hovered forward one last time and pushed the reverse thrust to maximum. The craft held for a split second, and then zoomed backward as the wrecking ball freed itself from its rocky prison. But now, Robotnik had another problem; he had forgotten the inertia and momentum of the ball. As he slowed the craft to a hover, he noticed too late the giant wrecking ball thundering towards him.

The wrecking ball missed Robotnik himself, but it utterly smashed the front of the craft. One of the two engines began to whine and grate as the rapidly spinning fans scraped against the warped metal of the engine cowling. Robotnik switched the damaged engine off as the wrecking ball fell below the craft. The entire contraption hung comically in the air for a second or two before dropping to the ground, wrecking ball first. It resembled a balloon, anchored by a heavy weight.

"Looks like you dropped the ball, Robuttnik!"

"Shut up, hedge rat! Just who do you think you are?!"

"I'm _not_ a rat! I'm Sonic! Sonic the Hedgehog!"

Robotnik knew now that he had to retreat. He could not lift the wrecking ball on one engine, though, so he was forced to hit the release button, allowing the heavy iron chain to come loose at the base of the hovercraft, where it settled limply on top of the wrecking ball. He climbed out of Sonic's reach and gunned his remaining engine as he fled the Green Hills.

-----

Robotnik soon arrived at Colossus and opened video links to Swatbot officers.

_"Profound greetings, Lord Robotnik. How goes the Green Hill sweep?"_

"Not well, officers. Not well at all. We have a potential situation on our hands."

_"Is there a particularly annoying group of dissenters?"_

"I'm facing dissent alright. But not from a large group."

_"How many are in the dissenting party?"_

Robotnik's face reddened.

"Well … just one."

Robotnik thought he heard a snicker.

_"One, sir?"_

"Yes, just one bloody rebel! He destroyed everybody on the Green Hill recruitment detail! And he trashed my personal strike craft! So don't you get a smart mouth! This one could be a genuine threat if he is not handled seriously!"

_"We are listening, sir."_

"He calls himself Sonic the Hedgehog. He is blue and stands about three feet tall."

_"And why is a hedgehog a threat to you, Honorable One?"_

"Sonic is extremely fast. I came across the black box of a destroyed Swatbot; it saw Sonic coming and thought he was a low-flying missile! I'm serious; use extreme caution with this rodent. Pass on this description and these instructions to all Swatbots and badniks: if you see Sonic the Hedgehog, kill him immediately. And if you suspect anybody of helping him, kill them as well."

The highest ranked Swatbot saluted.

_"Understood, sir!"_

"One more thing. Order the laboratory crews to activate Robotropolis's western defensive barrier."

_"Understood, sir."_

"Excellent. You are all dismissed."

-----

Sonic raced back to where he had left Flora and Paul, and carried them over to the still unopened capsule. Without saying anything, Sonic climbed onto the capsule and spotted a plunger switch on the top. He stepped on it, and minuscule explosive charges knocked the capsule walls outward. Confused Mobians began pouring out. Sonic turned to Flora and Paul.

"We need to make sure that these guys are alright."

It took about ten minutes to restore sanity among enough Mobians to take care of the rest. When the situation was under control, Sonic left yet again, telling them he was going to search for a way into Robotropolis.

-----

When Sonic neared the outskirts of Robotropolis, he soon realized that getting there would be much more difficult than he expected. Below him was a deep sluice of fast moving water. He knew that even an experienced swimmer could not make it through the torrent.

So he considered jumping. He looked up above the channel and saw a network of steel cables. They were so tangled that he would surely snag on any one of them if he tried to jump. But he could work around that, perhaps landing on one cable and jumping to another.

But then, he noticed the humming. He heard a low, ominous, buzzing hum, and after a while, he realized it was coming from the cables. He picked up a stray twig and threw it at one of the cables. It jittered and sparked violently upon contact, throwing blue arcs of high voltage electricity across the entire network, before falling, scorched and blackened, into the water, to be swept away by the raging current. Jumping was not an option either.

It seemed like the only possible way to get into Robotropolis was to go around the island and enter from the east. The problem with that was he would have to find a way across South Island's bay, Firestorm Gulf. He decided to return to the capsule while he thought about it.

-----

Five minutes later, Sonic had arrived back at the opened capsule and told Flora and Paul what he had seen.

"Robuttnik sure has me stumped. There's a moat all along the city's western border. And I can't jump across it either; there are high voltage cables spread out above it like a net. It looks like the only way into Robotropolis is from the other side, unless Robotnik has some sort of defense there as well."

"Well, the east side is the port. But that alone is probably defense enough, seeing as you can't swim well…" Paul mused.

Flora spoke up.

"Hey, I wonder if Lesser Mobotropolis has succumbed to Robotnik yet. It's across the bay from the main city. If we get over there quickly, maybe we can appropriate a boat and sail across to the main port."

"Well, that sounds like a good idea, but…"

"Yes?" Paul inquired.

"I don't think _we_ can all go there; I simply can't carry you both, and I need to get to Lesser Mobotropolis as soon as possible. Plus, I would be constantly worrying about your safety. I hope you both understand."

Paul opened his mouth to protest, but Flora held him back.

"We're reluctant, but we understand. I wish we could communicate with you, though."

Paul paused for a second and then produced a headset.

"During my time at Ovis I specialized in telecommunication and data manipulation. I suggest you wear this headset so that you can keep in touch with us. And I'll get to work on some of these badnik CPU's; then I can tell you roughly how many enemies to look for. What do you say?"

"I say that solves everything. I'm about to go, so speak now."

Sonic paused for less than a second.

"Time's up! I'm outta here!"

Sonic turned on his heel and rocketed off to the volcanic hills on the southwest corner of the island.


	6. Zero Hour

**Zero Hour**

Tails slowly tired out as noon approached. He had been searching the forest for hours without luck. Despite his best efforts, he had not found any weapons. Dismayed, he decided to head back to his house when he heard a muffled _thud_ from far away.

_Boom_. The ground shook slightly and Tails knew that his time was up. He broke into a frantic run back to his house, crashing through the brush as he went. Crossing his fingers, Tails hoped he could make it home before he got caught in a rain of napalm fire. A faint scream sounded from above. Tails looked up in time to see a napalm rocket streaking his way.

As the rocket approached at a terrifying rate, instinct took hold of Tails, and he began to do something that he had first learned to do shortly after he arrived on the island. He twirled his tails around at a rapid pace. As he spun them faster and faster, he jumped up and hung in the air, using his tails to fly like a helicopter. He had no idea how he did it, but flying was so natural to him now that he never bothered thinking about it. Tails put on a burst of speed and darted away from the incoming napalm rocket.

The rocket exploded where Tails had just been, throwing up scorching plumes of napalm fire. The surrounding trees caught fire almost instantly and spread the flames deeper into the forest. As Tails continued to weave through the woods, several more bombs began hitting all around, erupting in brilliant white tongues of flame, forcing him to stay alert, lest he stray into the path of one of the falling projectiles.

As the bombs continued to hit Poloy Forest, the fire spread uncontrollably. The flames and the haze changed the look of the entire forest, and Tails grew disoriented. He had weaved around so much; was he still flying in the right direction?

Tails grew very drowsy as smoke rose from the burning wood and infiltrated his lungs, making him shudder and cough in flight. The wood smoke burned his eyes, which blinked and watered. Before long, Tails was flying completely blind, not daring to open his eyes.

A stray ember landed on one of his tails. He yelped in pain and his flight faltered. Unable to see where he was going or fly straight, Tails nosedived and collided with a nearby tree.

Dazed and confused, Tails looked around and had no idea where he was or which way led back home. His head hurt from the collision and the heat was starting to overcome him. He wanted so much to simply fall asleep and rest for a while. Thoroughly fed up with the burning forest, he stumbled around, looking for a comfortable place to lie down. As he was shuffling drunkenly through the forest, he tripped on a root and fell off of a low ledge, landing in a deep puddle below.

Tails' attention returned to him when his face hit the cold water in the puddle. He straightened up and looked around him. The puddle must have been too large to have dried up yet. As his wits came back to him, Tails realized that if he had fallen asleep out here, he might not have woken back up. Still weak, but with renewed determination, Tails staggered out of the puddle and began to crawl. Where he was going, he did not know; he was sure only that moving was better than staying.

-----

A few minutes later, Tails came to a log bridge. He looked over the edge and saw yellow flames, no doubt fueled by the piles of dry timber and brush in the pit below. Tails cautiously took a few steps onto the bridge. Halfway across, however, the bridge lurched and Tails could feel it give under his weight. Panicking, he broke into a desperate run. He weaved and stumbled as the bridge tilted ever so slightly. With a snap, the ropes holding up the bridge broke at the ledge Tails had come from. Tails dived and grabbed onto a log of the bridge just before it swung down and slammed against the opposite wall of the pit.

It took every ounce of strength in Tails' body to keep him from getting bucked off of the bridge when it rammed into the pit wall. He bounced out, away from the wall, and clung with both hands to a log on the bridge. Finally, it settled, and he was dangling from the edge of the ravine. Spinning his tails to help him, Tails climbed up the logs and emerged, panting, from the burning valley. He had to rest for a few minutes, but he didn't stay long. Ignoring the urges to keep resting and fall asleep, Tails continued through the forest, searching for the way home.

Not long after he crossed the bridge, Tails's path led into a deep channel and terminated in a cove at the foot of a stone bluff about eighty feet high. He groaned in disappointment and started to turn back when a red glint from above caught his eye. Tails stopped in his tracks and looked up at the bluff. He could see a place in the bluff that looked like it may have been the entrance to a cave previously. Now, however, heavy boulders barred the entrance and obstructed all but the mysterious red pulses of light that shone from the cracks.

Curious, Tails hovered up to the level of the blocked cave and tugged at one of the boulders in vain. Tails wasn't puzzled for long, though, because after a few moments, he remembered his grenades. Tails pulled a grenade from his bandolier and wedged it between two rocks so that it wouldn't fall out. Then he pulled the pin, hovered rapidly backwards, and waited for it to go off.

The grenade exploded, sending boulder fragments everywhere. Tails hovered back to the bluff and alighted at the cave entrance as the dust cleared. The cave, it seemed, was really just an alcove; the end of it was clearly visible. There wasn't much to look at; the alcove was totally empty save for the source of the red glow. He saw, sitting on the ground, a fist-sized, lustrous red gem; another Chaos Emerald.

It was warm to the touch when Tails picked it up. He gazed at in amazement; the light from the burning forest made the Emerald shine so beautifully.

Tails soon realized that he no longer felt as tired or disoriented as he had a few minutes ago. As he peered out of the alcove, he saw that the fire was still as intense as ever, and yet it felt to him as if the heat was dying down. He looked at the Chaos Emerald in his hand. Was it protecting him from the heat? _Something_ was, to the extent that Tails soon felt well enough to exit the alcove and hover down to the ground.

Tails stood at the foot of the bluff and looked around. It walled him off on three sides, giving him no choice but to go back the way he had already come. Suddenly, Tails heard something crashing through the underbrush ahead of him. Whatever it was, it sounded like it was trampling small trees; and it was coming from down the path, his only route of escape. Soon, a monstrous contraption appeared. A two-legged bionic walker that stood about ten feet tall appeared out of the burning wood.

As it advanced slowly towards Tails, he could make out sinewy wire and hydraulic musculature in the vehicle's legs. In the cockpit of the craft was a menacing-looking robot. The robot addressed Tails.

_"You have no chance to escape. Surrender, and agree to vacate the island immediately. If you do not comply with these orders, you will be terminated."_

"I won't hand over Mobius's freedom to the likes of you!" Tails replied, defiantly.

A blackened barrel that resembled an exhaust pipe protruded slowly and ominously from the front of the craft.

_"You speak of freedom. Your loyalties must lie with the United Federation of Mobius. The Federation is finished. It now serves under a new regime: the glorious Empire of the Right and Honorable Lord Ivo Robotnik. This island and all of its assets now belong to him. You, however, have unwisely chosen to reject the orders set forth by the Emperor, and so now must pay the price for insubordination."_

Fearing the oncoming attack, Tails unhooked a grenade, pulled the pin, and threw it at the walker's feet. But the explosion simply rolled off of the heavy armor plates on the feet, and the blast had dissipated by the time it reached the cockpit. The walker stood unscathed.

A whine built up from the bowels of the walker. It reminded Tails of a jet engine powering up. It was at that moment that he realized the purpose of the barrel. For a moment, a red glow issued from the barrel of the craft, and Tails hastily took to the air. Milliseconds later, white-hot flames billowed from the cyborg, scorching the spot Tails had been standing in a fraction of a second before.

As Tails watched the craft from the relative safety of the air, he noticed that the robot was not actually pressing the trigger when the walker shot its flames. Perhaps pulling the trigger merely primed the fuel, and releasing it shot the flames for a given period of time.

Inspiration struck Tails after he looked into the cockpit. He waited until the robot started holding in the trigger again. Then he flew down and stuffed another grenade deep into the barrel.

The robot froze, its finger still on the trigger, holding back the inevitable release. Tails wondered if artificial intelligence was capable of feeling terror. He hovered a safe distance away, awaiting the robot's decision. As the robot puzzled over the impossible problem, it rerouted power from its motor system to its brain, and its grip on the trigger relaxed.

The craft began to spew forth another jet of flames, which set off the grenade lodged in the barrel. The explosion hit the flamethrower's fuel tanks, and the craft disappeared in a frenzy of light, noise, and heat. When the black smoke cleared, the robotic pilot and the cockpit were nowhere to be seen, and the two legs of the craft stood up comically, still in place, supporting a nonexistent seat.

Short of breath, Tails sat panting on the ground for a few minutes. He tried desperately to register all that had happened to him in the past hour when he suddenly realized how to get back home. His sense of direction returned, and his bearings reestablished themselves in his head. There was no way he could have remembered on his own. He looked once again at his newly acquired Chaos Emerald before taking off and flying back toward his house. It seemed that these gems were capable of much more than just electrical conduction.

Poloy Forest continued to burn around him, yet as he neared his house, he noticed that the trees near it had not caught fire. Tails began to worry; he was sure that Robotnik's forces would get suspicious when they saw a patch of forest that refused to burn. Gulping, Tails ducked inside, wondering what to do.

-----

A very small bird-like robot flew high over Poloy Forest, surveying the progress of the firebombing. Things seemed to be going very well. The entire forest was ablaze as far as its robotic eyes could see. Everywhere, from directly below its flight path, to the very edges of the forest, was on fire. At least, the tops of all the trees were burning. That had to mean that the rest of the woods were lit as well. There was just no way that a burning treetop would not also be burning everywhere else as well. If that islander had chosen to stay, he would not have very long to live now. Its work done, the bird flew away to report that the entire forest was currently burning.

-----

Back safe at home, Tails unlocked the computer and checked the transmission log. It appeared his computer had not yet been detected. Tails himself, however, was in the system now. He saw a report of a failed attack deep within the burning woods of Poloy Forest, but thankfully, they still had not located his home yet.

Tails decided that a time like this would be a good time to test out a tiny robot that he had built about a year ago. It was very simply designed, just a bipedal scout of a robot. Tails had not designed it to be able to move around freely and constantly; although the robot was capable of walking on its own whenever it found something, Tails generally controlled it using a remote. His remote had, in addition to buttons and joysticks, a video display that allowed him to see what the robot was seeing. A microphone on the remote allowed him to issue voice commands to the little robot.

He had designed the robot to serve as his assistant engineer. The remote robot was very observant, and, upon looking at a machine or machine part, could tell him when the device was built, what its purpose was, how it worked, etc. This power of deduction required vast amounts of memory, forcing Tails to leave out the extra intelligence the robot would need to move around with complete independence from a remote. But even so, the robot could still walk towards a strange machine or signal that one was around if it picked anything up on its scanner. Maybe Tails could use his little robot to find weapons and fight off the attackers.

Tails now turned his attention to the Chaos Emerald he had collected. He was not really sure what to do with it. He simply watched it shine in the light. A flame seemed to burn deep inside it, and as Tails watched closely, he realized that the Emerald was projecting an image; he could see rivers of magma swirling within the gem. As the image faded, Tails entertained an eerie premonition that the Chaos Emerald was trying to communicate with him. Could it have possibly been showing him the fiery tunnels of Phlegethon Cavern?

He looked out the window at the still burning forest. All he could think however was that the heat was probably not unbearable and that the flames would conceal him from enemies as he made his way to the caverns. As he wondered what had come over him, he looked back down at the gem and guessed that holding that red Chaos Emerald somehow boosted his confidence. Perhaps paying those hellish caverns a visit would ultimately help him find a solution to the invasion. Taking the Emerald and the remote robot with him, Tails exited his house once more and turned in the direction of Phlegethon Cavern.

-----

Tails could feel the geothermic heat emanating from the cavern hundreds of feet away. Steeling his nerves yet again, Tails stepped into the cavern, the remote robot trotting along at his heels like a pet.

A sinister dim red glow illuminated the steaming walls. Tails trod carefully, fearful of the treacherous magma that most certainly ran beneath the hot ground; how deep below he was not sure.

The tunnel opened into a ledge. For a moment Tails thought he had stepped into a blast furnace. Hot dry air overwhelmed him once again, and he choked temporarily on sulfur fumes. He gazed down; hundreds of feet below him, he saw a lake of runny, red-orange magma. Between where he was standing and a tunnel on the other side of the chamber, he noticed tall, pillar-like islands in the magma. Tails gulped and hovered out over it.

He flew as fast as he could to the nearest island and landed, relieved that it supported his weight. In this manner, he continued across the lake of magma until he had reached the other side. He eagerly retreated into the relative cool of the tunnel.

Tails had not walked far when he noticed a steel door in the wall. Surely the military had not stockpiled any weapons in such a hot place, had they? Tails decided to find out.

There was no handle on the door; it had to be unlocked with a keypad. But the heat from the caverns had fried the door's circuits, equivalent to melting a key. Tails had no way to get inside. Even the vent in the wall next to the door was too small for Tails to squeeze through.

Not stumped for long, Tails hit a button on the remote control and a small rotor extended from its backside. The robot bent over and went to all fours as the rotor started spinning. It slowly rose into the air and hovered. Tails piloted the robot straight into the hole and directed it into the other room.

Inside the room were neat piles of fist-sized devices. Holding the robot at a steady hover, Tails hit a button that allowed him to highlight onscreen objects in a targeting reticule. He homed in and locked on to one of the round objects. Next, he spoke into the microphone.

"Remote robot, grab target."

The robot swooped down towards the object until the target dropped out of sight of the screen. After a moment, Tails watched the viewpoint change once again as he flew it back into the vent.

When the robot emerged, it was holding one of the spherical items from the other room. Tails could see that this object was studded, just like his grenades. There was a hooked stub protruding from it. As he held it up, the remote robot spoke in a basic, mechanical voice.

_"Item found: Remote detonated explosive device, Federal Military Issue, circa 2959._

_"Usage: The detonation remote is plugged into the bomb, to be removed before deployment of the weapon. Once the remote is removed, click the yellow button on it to arm or disarm the weapon. Once armed, deploy the weapon, and when the bomb has reached satisfactory proximity to the target, press the red button to detonate._

_"Status: Despite awaiting deployment for over thirty years, the recovered weapon appears to be intact and fully operational._

_"Analysis complete."_

The robot fell silent and Tails, having heard the analysis, continued down the tunnel.

-----

This couldn't be right. Tails had found himself in front of a metal door. It couldn't be a dead end; Tails had not seen any branching paths since he entered the caverns. He had no idea how much farther the tunnels continued. He may have to turn back anyway. But he didn't know if he had found what he was looking for in the caves. He decided to try to get past the door.

Tails lobbed a grenade at the door, ran away, and crouched. The grenade exploded. The metal was scorched black, but the door remained as solid as before. Tails was stumped for a few moments before he noticed another ventilation shaft near the door.

Tails picked up the remote robot and the remote bomb. He pulled the detonation key out of the bomb and hooked the bomb to the robot. Then he took the robot's controller and maneuvered the little robot up into the air, like a toy helicopter with a water balloon attached. Tails looked at the video screen and saw the room from the robot's point of view. Tails guided the robot into the tiny hole in the wall, and walked it through to the other side.

The robot dropped about a foot from the opening before taking flight again. Tails pointed it at the door, looking for a way in. He spied a keypad; it was recessed about an inch and a half into the wall, and the recess had a downward slope. It was perfect.

Tails flew the robot over to the keypad. When it was hovering over the lock, Tails deposited the remote bomb. It rolled down the slope and nestled into the recess in the wall, guaranteed not to fall out.

Tails deftly maneuvered the robot back through the hole, and when the robot was back at his heels, Tails pushed the yellow button on the key. A faint beep sounded through the ventilation shaft. Tails pressed the red button.

A muffled boom shook the tunnel, and the door slid slowly open; the bomb had successfully blown the lock.

Tails was surprised when he walked into the room. It was bathed in green light. He looked around and spotted its source: a green Chaos Emerald.

As Tails picked it up he wondered if each Chaos Emerald would lead him to the next one. Would these gems allow him to stop Robotnik?

Tails gazed into the Emerald for a moment and saw an image of a mountain. Tails decided that he was seeing Polly Mountain in the gem. Perhaps that was his next destination.

Tails felt a draft. He looked up and saw a hole that was large enough for him to crawl through. Tails took the Chaos Emerald and flew upward, out of Phlegethon Cavern.

-----

Upon exiting the tunnel, Tails found that he had reached the foot of Polly Mountain. The caverns below him probably continued deep under the mountain. He turned toward the mountain and began to climb, when something shot over his head.

Tails saw a robotic bird flying overhead, darting back and forth. He could not believe his eyes and his luck when he saw what the bird was carrying: a purple Chaos Emerald.

Ignoring the fact that he was under attack, Tails took to the air and flew after the bird. The bird dodged and countered, flying at Tails whenever it saw a chance. Tails pulled out a grenade and threw it. The bird moved out of the way and the bomb missed its target by several yards, exploding uselessly on the ground below. Tails had no chance of damaging the bird; it was simply too fast.

Suddenly, Tails got an idea. He activated the remote robot and launched it into the air. Now Tails had a wingman. He flew towards the bird, and the remote robot followed suit. Tails and the remote robot closed in on the bird from different directions. Now the bird was confused. It could not dodge both of them; its only option was to retreat.

In this manner, Tails and the remote robot chased the bird further up the mountain. Soon the three were hovering in front of the opening to a short tunnel. Looking in, Tails noticed a small hole in the ceiling of the cave. When he saw light shining through it, he knew that there had to be another end. Forcing the bird into the cave and blocking its escape, Tails maneuvered the remote robot away from himself, instructing the robot to search for the other end of the hole.

Distracted and unable to escape, the mechanical bird watched Tails warily as it gripped the purple Chaos Emerald tightly in its talons. Tails waited, hoping that his little robot was going to show up soon. At last, he saw the robot appear in the small hole in the tunnel, behind the bird, who was completely preoccupied with Tails. The remote robot noiselessly took to the air and glided behind and under the mechanical bird. Suddenly, the remote robot flew forward and its propeller blades severed the tensile cables in the bird's talons, causing it to drop the Chaos Emerald.

Unable to pick up the Chaos Emerald or fight effectively, the bird simply charged at Tails, intent only on escaping from the tunnel. Tails obliged and allowed the bird to get away; he had what he wanted now.

Admiring the three new Chaos Emeralds he had found so far, Tails' spirits rose. Each one seemed to renew him slightly, boosting his strength. He wondered how many there were on this island.

Tails looked out to the ocean and wondered if he should try the smaller islands next. It was a safe bet that the satellite islands held weapons just like on the main one; after all, the military must have had ships to get them from island to island. The more Tails thought about it, the more important it seemed. His enemy had arrived in ships. Any weapons on the smaller islands would be fairly easy for them to reach. If he could take down that robot in Poloy Forest, he was sure he could take on whatever robots attacked him on the surrounding islands.

Putting the Chaos Emeralds away, Tails flew down the mountain, so glad that he had been insightful enough to arm the Sea Fox shortly after he had arrived. About a year and a half ago, he had found a very large machine gun sitting on a dolly in a shed near his house. Intrigued, he had wheeled it over to the house and tried fitting it to the Sea Fox. He had to design a system of pulleys to lift the gun off of the dolly and into the submersible, but it was worth it. Months later, he had successfully fitted it to the Sea Fox and fired it. He had never really had a need for it; he just thought it would look cool on his submersible. But now, Tails felt so lucky to have built it on. It would suit him nicely on the trek through Cocoa Island's dark, robot-infested waters.


	7. Rocky Mountain Way

**Rocky Mountain Way**

Sheer marble cliffs rose up on both sides as Sonic made his way into a valley of the Marble Hills, in South Island's south west corner. He spoke into his headset as he traveled down the gulley at high speed.

"Hey Paul, can you still hear me?"

"Loud and clear, Sonic."

"Sweet! Okay, so the plan is for me to find a safe way through these mountains to Lesser Mobotropolis and then come back for you guys?"

"To a tee, Sonic!"

"Alright! What do I need to know to clear the way?"

"The capsule is not showing up in the data banks of any of the badniks we trashed. My guess is that the only robots who know the whereabouts of Marble Hill's capsule are the ones guarding it."

"And what about the badniks themselves?"

"You're in the backwaters, Sonic. Nobody lives out there. Robotnik's Marble Hill detail only consists of fifty robots; twenty Swatbots, probably guarding the capsule, ten Caterkillers, and twenty Batbrains."

"Okay, refresh my memory; what are the last two like?"

"Batbrains are flying robots. Their bat-like qualities are probably ideal for the caves around the area you're in."

"And Caterkillers?"

"Caterkillers are nasty mechanized centipedes. Your spin attack should be able to handle them, but if you land it anywhere other than the Caterkiller's head, it will self destruct on you. Be careful."

"Roger that."

"There aren't a lot of robots on your end, Sonic; really the only thing to do over there is find that capsule."

"Find the capsule, got it. Sonic out!"

Sonic soon reached a cave and, without slowing sped into the opening and went underground.

-----

Sonic could make out stone passageways and structures inside the tunnels. The Marble Hills must have been inhabited at some point; there were even sconces in the wall. They were lit, but Robotnik's strike force had probably done that recently.

He reached a dead end. It looked like there was a hole in the floor, but it was plugged with a thick iron disc. A heavy chain extended down from the ceiling to the center of the disc. Sonic noticed a depression in the floor, and a plunger button at the bottom. When he stood on the plunger the disc slowly rose. As he moved away, however, the disc fell back into position. Stumped only for a minute, he moved a nearby stone block up to the pit and dropped it onto the switch. The disc lifted once again, and as Sonic dropped through the hole underneath, he saw rows of long, sharp spikes along the bottom of it. Alarmed at the spikes, he darted out from under them and moved on hastily.

About ten minutes later, Sonic stood at the edge of a river of magma that flowed out from under one low wall and disappeared beneath another one. Sonic was about to cross using the ledges on one of the walls, when a spill of magma poured out of a hole in the ceiling for a few seconds.

In Sonic's momentary pause of confusion, ten black objects swooped down from the ceiling. They must have been a group of Batbrains. They darted through the air, changing direction rapidly and erratically. Sonic crouched low, anticipating the impending attack. The Batbrains danced in the air for a moment, and then descended upon him.

Sonic sidestepped all but one of the Batbrains. He looked up from the onslaught just in time to see the last badnik flying right at his face. With lightning reflexes, he reached up with both hands and caught it by the shoulders, holding it away from his face at arm's length. The Batbrain sneered and hissed as it struggled to get to Sonic. It opened its mouth to reveal a pair of sharp, narrow fangs.

The nine other Batbrains were circling back now. Thinking on his feet, Sonic freed one hand, hoping that his other one would be enough to hold back his assailant for a fraction of a second. With his right hand free, he chopped sideways at the badnik's mouth, snapping its fangs off. Now that the robot was disarmed, Sonic pushed it toward the ground with his hands while thrusting his knee upward with incredible force. The Batbrain shattered as it hit Sonic's knee.

Eighteen miniscule robotic claws grabbed Sonic all over as the other Batbrains swarmed him. With alarm, he noticed that he was sliding; the Batbrains were flapping so hard that they managed to drag him along the ground. And just as Sonic feared, they were dragging him toward the pit of magma.

He kicked and struggled, but to no avail. Every time he tried to break free, his feet would leave the ground, costing him traction and allowing the Batbrains to carry him even closer to the molten river. Panic took hold of him, and his mind raced to come up with a way to fight off the bats.

Inspiration struck him. Fighting the tug of the Batbrains, Sonic reached for his headset and turned the volume all the way up. Next, he pushed the mouthpiece as close as he could to the earphones. Finally, he switched it on. Feedback screeched out of the headphones, and the badniks all let go of him.

Just as Sonic had hoped, the badniks had been designed very closely after real bats. They possessed incredibly sensitive auditory capabilities, and the high frequency feedback had overloaded their sensors and was now wreaking havoc with their circuitry. His dangerous attackers were now reduced to fumbling around on the cave floor.

Sonic wrenched open each shell, but found no Mobians inside of them. He wondered if these badniks were older models; that would explain why the bodies had not been adapted for encapsulation. To ensure that the badniks could not reactivate, Sonic ripped whatever components he could out of each body and tossed all of the circuit boards into the river of magma.

-----

Twenty more minutes of wandering found Sonic in a hot, narrow, stone passageway that he had dropped into from a corridor above. Now, he stepped down the passage, hoping to find the source of the rumbling he had heard upon entering this corridor.

Sonic did not have to look long. He jumped in alarm as a wave of magma appeared down the corridor and raced towards him. He turned around and ran back through the passage as fast as he could. Finally he saw an opening in the ceiling. He leapt through it as the magma continued to flow down the passage below him.

He tried every doorway he could find along the new hallway, but he found no capsule. Not far down the tunnel, he grew aware of movement ahead. A long segmented body was coiling up and staring him down. It must have been a Caterkiller. Sonic ran up to it, jumped, and punted its head off with a flying kick. He was hundreds of feet further down the tunnel by the time the head landed.

Sonic skidded to a stop at the edge of another molten lake. He noticed a current of magma that flowed to the other side. Thinking quickly, he spied a large, flat marble slab. He struggled to pick up an edge of it and he managed to drag it to the ledge and heft it into the magma. It floated. Encouraged, Sonic climbed down the ledge and onto the slab. It held his weight. The current caught the slab and Sonic floated out across the lake.

Sonic soon realized that the ledge on the other side was about fifty feet high; he had no way to climb up there. To complicate things further, the current slowed, stranding him in the middle of the magma.

Suddenly, a rumble shook his platform. Without warning, a jet of magma erupted out from under him, and the tremendous force pushed him and the slab upwards. Sonic jumped off of the slab, landed on the ledge, and continued, hoping that he would find something soon.

-----

Sonic soon found himself outside again. His way narrowed to a strip of ground. Lava hemmed him in on both sides. He arrived at a gap in the strip. Two marble platforms stood at either side of the ten-foot space, and lava flowed between them. A faint hum grew behind him, and Sonic turned around.

Doctor Robotnik hovered above him in his craft. Sonic read the name of it painted on the side.

"Egg-O-Matic?? What the hell?? Ahahahahahahahaha!! That is so lame! That's the best name you could think of??"

"Not another word from you, Sonic!" Robotnik snapped back. "You must die!"

Robotnik hit a button and a barrel protruded from the bottom of the craft. He hovered over to Sonic's platform. He pulled a lever and a glass canister launched downward, out of the barrel. Sonic easily jumped the gap to the other side as the canister shattered on the first one. Liquid spilled all over the ledge; it caught fire when it came into contact with the lava, and the flames instantly engulfed the entire platform.

As Sonic ran to the dry grass, Robotnik whistled out a shrill note. Without warning, twenty molehills bulged out of the ground and disintegrated into dust, revealing Swatbots that had been hiding beneath. The guards surrounded him in a tight perimeter, preventing him from gaining enough momentum to tackle them. They all raised their weapons and prepared to fire.

Sonic jumped straight up as twenty bolts of energy scorched the ground on which he had been standing. The glare of the sun overhead prevented the Swatbots from aiming at him properly.

"No!! Destroy that rat!" Robotnik ordered.

While the Swatbots normally would have avoided shooting blindly at a target, Robotnik's command overrode this instinct. They began to fire into the air, counting on the chance that a stray bolt could hit the falling hedgehog. One of the bolts went wide and grazed Robotnik's hovercraft.

"Idiots! Watch where you're shooting, damn it!"

Sonic landed outside the circle of Swatbots and began darting around the open grass, dodging the volley of laser bolts that flew at him. It wasn't long before the Swatbots' weapons overheated, forcing the soldiers to wait for their weapons to cool off. As soon as Sonic spotted the opening, he dashed forward, headlong into the guard force. As he neared them, he went into a spin and gutted two Swatbots. Flustered, Robotnik hovered above Sonic and dropped another canister. Sonic whirled to face it and caught the bottle before it hit him. Not even stopping to look back, Sonic sped away until he was a safe distance from the soldiers. He would wait for another opportunity.

"No, no, no!" Robotnik yelled. "Stagger your firing so that your comrades can cool off safely!"

Sonic peered up at the Swatbots. Only six of them were actually firing at him now, but they were forcing him to keep dodging, and they prevented him from reaching the twelve remaining ones who stood inert behind them. After a short time, six of the Swatbots at rest raised their weapons and started firing, allowing the first group of six to fall back and cool their weapons. He would never get a chance to attack them now.

He darted behind a rock and the firing ceased. He knew they were still there, waiting for him. How could Sonic drive away Robotnik and his Swatbots? If he abandoned his cover and tried to charge them, he would get hit for sure. He thought of a way he could take care of the Swatbots, but he would have to leave the cover of the rock and get back to the platform behind them, all without getting shot. After about a minute's thought, he remembered the trick he had pulled in the Green Hills. Could he do something similar here? He picked up a handful of dirt and found that it was quite dry. Next he concentrated intently on finding the direction of the wind; he was upwind of Robotnik's guard. Perfect.

Preparing to execute his plan of action, Sonic opened the canister he had caught. Next, he ripped off a shoe and took his sock off, stuffing the sock into the neck of the container. He took a deep breath and curled up into a ball. With sudden force, he began to spin dash in place. The rapid spinning kicked the dry dirt into the air, where it dispersed into clouds of thick dust.

As soon as the growing dust clouds hit the soldiers, Sonic dashed out from behind the rock and skirted the edge of the cloud. He had to get to the platform over the lava before the dust cleared.

Sonic hit the platform just as the tail end of the dust cloud was over it. In the few seconds of invisibility he had left, he stooped and lowered the canister close to the lava. His sock caught fire as the dust cleared away. Robotnik noticed Sonic and cried out in alarm, but the Swatbots did not react before he slammed his Molotov cocktail onto the dry brown grass just beyond the platform.

The grass ignited rapidly, and the flames soon spread to the Swatbots. The robots sparked and melted as the fire consumed them all. Robotnik watched in horror as his guard force was incinerated.

"You… will pay _dearly_ for that, you damned rodent!" Robotnik hissed. "Now, I'll"—

The hovercraft's radio emitted a burst of static. Keeping his eyes firmly on Sonic, Robotnik picked up the radio.

"You have picked the absolute _worst_ time to call!" he shouted into the mouthpiece. "You'd better have an exceptional reason for contacting me now!!"

Unintelligible dialogue sounded in reply.

"What? Damn it, I forgot! Well, entertain them a while!"

Robotnik grimaced as the caller answered back.

"No patience, hmm? Well, I'd better keep up appearances. I'll be there momentarily."

Robotnik put down the radio and glared at Sonic.

"Hear this, you deplorable little vermin: you haven't beaten me, and you never will. The further you pursue me, the higher my defenses will be. Once I'm finished attending to a prior commitment, I will see that you die in agony and that your worthless efforts to defeat me go up in smoke!"

"Over my dead body," Sonic replied.

"That's the idea," Robotnik retorted as he hovered away.

The grass had caught fire quickly, but it didn't take long for the fire to exhaust its fuel and burn out. Once it was safe, Sonic ventured off of the platform and found the capsule within a few minutes. He talked into his headset.

"Hey Paul, Flora. I found the capsule and defeated Robuttnik's guard. I'm coming to get you both."

Within an hour, Sonic had brought Paul and Flora through the Marble Hills and they stood at the capsule. Sonic opened it and allowed Paul and Flora to tend to the dazed prisoners.

"Now what?" Sonic asked.

"Lesser Mobotropolis isn't too far from here," Paul replied. "If you're going to get into the main city, we should see about finding a boat or something."

"Think I should scope out the area before we all go?"

"Sure. Now Sonic, Lesser Mobotropolis is much more urban than the places we've been so far. There's bound to be more security. Be careful, and if you find a capsule there, make sure there are no robots around before you open it; they pose a threat to our fellow Mobians."

"Okay! I'm off!" Sonic declared before he disappeared to the east.


	8. The Deep

**The Deep**

Back in his house, Tails looked over the Sea Fox to prepare it for the upcoming journey while eating an early afternoon snack. Once he was finished, he unlocked his computer and took a look at what the scanner had picked up.

He found a string of commands to occupy Cocoa Islet, the largest of the smaller islands surrounding the main one. Perhaps Robotnik was planning to use the place as a base of operations, a foothold from which he could strike out at the main island.

He locked the computer to think. Did he dare try to get to Cocoa Islet? Besides the Vulcan cannon, the Sea Fox was unarmed. Robotnik's soldiers could be guarding their new fortress with any number of weapons. Tails decided to see if the purple Chaos Emerald could provide any guidance.

An afterthought struck Tails, and before he looked at his newly acquired Chaos Emerald, he logged onto FedNet, the UFM's online military archive; perhaps he could find more information about these Chaos Emeralds.

As the search hits appeared, Tails clicked on an entry for Chaos Emeralds. According to the article, their origins were unknown, but ancient texts the world over seemed to agree that there were seven in all, and that any one of them could grant considerable strength and energy to the holder. He wondered to himself if he dared to believe that the Emeralds held some kind of magical properties. Closing out the browser, he turned back to the purple Emerald.

An image of a small island appeared in the gem. A forest covered the entire island, and Tails could see trees swaying violently in gusts of wind. The Emerald must have been showing him Green Island. That island was known for its unpredictable wind currents. Maybe he could find something there that would allow him safe passage to Cocoa Islet.

Tails walked back to the lab where he kept the Sea Fox. It was floating in a pool of water inside the lab. This pool was actually a deep vertical shaft that exited into an underwater cave. The cave led to Rocky Lake, meaning that Tails could get to the other islands without ever having to walk across the island, where he might be visible. Taking his robot and the purple and green Chaos Emeralds with him, he boarded the Sea Fox and activated all of its systems. He then closed the bubble above him, dived, motored out of the cave, and headed northwest.

-----

Rocky Lake was not technically a lake; it was the name of the dark, murky, treacherous shallows that surrounded Cocoa Island and its satellite isles. Tails knew the waters pretty well but, with so little visibility, he never took chances; he relied on the sonar navigation system he had built and installed for the Sea Fox. A sonic transmitter sent out sound pulses, measured the time it took for the sound to return, and fed the data into a computer that mapped out the terrain. Tails saw the foot of a land mass about half a mile ahead. Green Island was getting close.

As Tails neared the island, a large object appeared out of the murk. Tails squinted at it, but he couldn't tell what it was. He swiveled his sonar transmitter so that it pointed directly above him and looked at the shape onscreen. It was just a shark.

Tails sighed with relief. Sharks, he could handle; the Sea Fox wouldn't let him down. Reassured, he rose to the surface, as he was now close enough to the island. He never passed the shark on the way up, though. That was strange. It seemed to be floating, and not underwater. Perhaps it was dead? Tails did not have to wait very long to find out. As he surfaced, he realized that the object he spotted was clearly not a shark.

A large, oddly shaped craft floated in front of Tails, blocking his way to the island. Several robotic soldiers walked about the decks, looking over the railing at the Sea Fox. Guns and cannons lined the deck and the towers. Writing on the hull read: _Imperial Navy – Destroyer Class_. Tails had stumbled into a trap.

How had it happened? How could the sonar detector have mistaken the craft for a shark? He looked closely at the odd shape of the destroyer and wondered if, just as with stealth aircraft, its profile was designed so as to fool sonar detectors and create the image of a harmless animal. There was no other explanation for it; Tails had checked the sonar system before he left.

Tails' eyes snapped up to the deckhands. They had raised their weapons. The gun turrets were swiveling in his direction. Instinctively, Tails pulled his own trigger and let forth a burst from the Vulcan cannon. Tails' weapon roared, but the bullets merely clanged off of the hull of the destroyer.

Not daring to stay any longer, Tails immediately turned the Sea Fox around to get away. As he changed course, he saw the muzzle flashes of the destroyer's weapons. He darted across the water as tiny fountains splashed up where the bullets had hit the surface. They traveled in a row towards the Sea Fox, missing it only because Tails had been maneuvering so erratically.

Tails completed the about face and opened up the throttle only to be cut off by a much larger ship. An Imperial Carrier stood between him and the rest of Rocky Lake. It was massive, large enough to have carried the destroyer inside its hull.

Gigantic turrets flashed as they fired their deadly payload at Tails. Water splashed up in explosive geysers all around him. Tails dived under before either craft could get another shot at him.

An alarm sounded in the cockpit of the tiny craft. Tails checked the sonar systems and detected that a torpedo had been launched at the Sea Fox. Horrified, he gunned the engine and headed towards the bottom of the shallows.

Tails examined the sonar system more closely. The torpedo was still very far away, but it was gaining on him, and if he didn't act within the next two minutes, the torpedo would catch him. His only hope was to find a way to put an obstacle between him and the torpedo and fool it into hitting the object.

After about thirty seconds had passed, he spotted a high underwater wall. Crossing his fingers, he dropped low to the ground, and then entered a steep climb as the wall approached. Tails crested the top of the ridge and then dived as steeply as he had climbed. He had to get down deep enough so that the torpedo would continue along the bottom instead of following him over the ridge. As the torpedo approached the wall, Tails held his breath.

A shockwave jostled the Sea Fox and startled Tails. He turned the Sea Fox around and looked at the top of the ridge. Within a few seconds, he saw a mass of air bubbles rising toward the surface of the water. The torpedo had exploded on the other side of the wall. He was out of danger for now.

Tails brooded in the safety of Rocky Lake's dark depths. How could he get to Green Island with such heavy security around it? Perhaps another small island held additional weapons for him. He decided to try Cavern Island. That was not too far away. He reckoned it was too remote even for Robotnik's soldiers to have taken it over yet. He steered the Sea Fox to the south and disappeared into the depths of the lake once more.

-----

Tails piloted the Sea Fox into a waterway that led underneath the island. It looked like he was going to be underground once again. When the water was shallow enough, he moored the Sea Fox at the banks and got out. He looked around and saw a stream of water pouring out of a hole in the wall and into the shallows where the Sea Fox was moored. The shallows led into an underground river that ran parallel to a narrow footpath. The footpath disappeared into the depths of the island. Tails took one last look around and started down the tunnel on foot.

Cracks in the cavern walls allowed sunlight to filter through and illuminate the path ahead. Tails walked down the pathway for about half an hour, the remote robot walking along at his heels. As he turned the next corner, the pathway ended abruptly. A sheer rock wall terminated the path. The river alongside the path, however, was still flowing deeper into the cavern. Tails decided to jump in.

The water was freezing, but fortunately not too deep. Tails was able to wade down the river, assisted by a very gentle current. The ceiling got very low in several places, but never dropped to less than three feet above the surface. After a few moments, the tunnel exited into a large chamber, and the floor of the shallow stream dropped off abruptly, and soon Tails was unable to touch the bottom anymore.

He was in a small underground lake. Light filtered in from above. Tails swam to shore and wrung out his fur. The remote robot clicked and whirred excitedly behind him, like a dog that had just caught the scent of a treat. The robot walked over to a pile of heavy metal balls. They were covered in grime, and small protrusions jutted out all over them. The remote robot began to speak:

_"Item found: Naval mines, Federal Military Issue, circa 2948._

_"Usage: This weapon is deployed from submarines and intended to be used on targets that are below the craft. Once armed and deployed, they sink, and then detonate on impact._

_"Status: These mines are operational, but not currently armed, and are safe to approach._

_"Analysis complete."_

Tails wrapped his entire body around one of the mines and struggled to pick it up. How in the world would he be able to carry a single one of these, let alone all of them? Perhaps he could roll them out one by one? He managed to move the first mine a few feet, but it took considerable exertion. He turned back to the pile and groaned. This would take way too long.

_I need a better way to carry all of these_, he thought.

Feeling deflated, Tails turned back to the mine he had tried to move, only to find that it had disappeared.

Tails looked about in alarm. Where had it gone? There was no way it could have moved away on its own. He scanned the entire ledge, looking for the missing mine, but it simply was not there.

A green glow lit up the area, and Tails realized that it was coming from the Chaos Emerald. Tails looked at the gem and noticed an image in the stone. Holding it up to his eyes, Tails saw that it was showing him an image of a mine, identical to the one in the pile that he had found.

"No way…"

Justifiably spooked, Tails tapped at the image in the emerald, hardly daring to believe his eyes. If he had to guess, he was pretty sure that the gem had acted upon his need for a way to store his weapons. He definitely thought to himself that he needed to stow them somewhere, after which the mine behind him had simply vanished. Perhaps that also meant that he could call them back from storage if he needed them? Hoping for success, Tails fixed the image of the mine in his head and convinced himself that he needed it back. His eyes snapped open in amazement when he heard a crunch on the loose rocks behind them. He turned around and saw on the ground the mine that had gone missing a moment ago. When he turned to look at the Chaos Emerald, there was no image in it.

Excited now, Tails concentrated again and, just as he guessed, the mine disappeared once more. This time, he closed his eyes and concentrated on the entire pile, willing them to transfer into the verdant gem. When he opened his eyes, the pile was gone. Tails looked at the green Chaos Emerald and saw, to his satisfaction, an image of a pile of mines reflected in the gem. He had discovered another use for the Chaos Emeralds.

-----

Tails became aware that his path was descending. He still was not sure what he was looking for. He would not be able to use the mines; the battleships would be above him. He had to keep searching until he found something else.

After fifteen minutes of walking, the remote robot perked up yet again. It led Tails to a cluster of long, bullet-shaped objects about a foot long each. Tails could make out a "danger of fire" warning on the side.

_"Item found: Napalm bomb, Federal Military Issue, circa 2968._

_"Usage: To arm, pull the firing pin out of the nose. Detonator is triggered by impact, not time delay. Upon impact, the bomb releases and ignites a spray of napalm in the direction it was thrown, burning away almost anything less than thirty feet from the point of impact._

_"Status: This weapon is ready for utilization. Suggest it be used to burn away thick underbrush that blocks your path._

_"Analysis complete."_

Tails added his new find to the store of mines he carried with him, but he was still disappointed. He had found more weapons, but once again, they would be useless against such large battleships. Weary, he continued down the only tunnel there was.

-----

Tails had not traveled far when the tunnel exited into a vertical shaft. Tails looked down and could not see the bottom. He looked up and saw a pinpoint of light. Was that the outside, or just an illuminated room of the cavern? He felt the walls of the shaft. They were very warm. Steam was eddying off of the rocks and swirling down towards the bottom. Tails gulped and spun his tails around to hover. He ventured out into the shaft.

Tails looked above him and groaned. That opening had to be hundreds of feet up. He didn't think he could fly upwards for that long. To make matters worse, he heard distant rumbling. Should he be worrying about it, or was he just freaking out? It stressed his nerves.

Another rumble shook the shaft, and Tails faltered in surprise. That was all he could take. His tails were finally giving out and he had to rest. Tails reached out with both hands for the wall of the shaft. He cried out in alarm when he slipped and slid a few feet down the shaft. The walls were wet and slippery, as if water had been poured down them recently. Tails held fast to his handholds. The rumbling grew louder and he feared that water would come cascading down the shaft and knock him into space.

Desperate, Tails began to climb the slippery wall, but he slipped again, and this time he was unable to catch himself. He bounced off of the wall and was thrown out into the center of the shaft, unable to slow his fall. The rumbling grew to a deafening intensity, and Tails wondered why he didn't see any water pouring down above him. Tails yelped in pain as a wall of hot liquid slammed into his backside. He immediately stopped falling, and an incredible force propelled him up the shaft at an alarming rate.

Tails had landed in a geyser, and a torrent of hot water and steam was now carrying him up the shaft faster than he could imagine. He hoped he would fit through the hole at the top.

Within seconds the geyser blasted him out of the hole and deposited him outside. He saw the stream of water rushing up out of the opening, only to fall back seconds later.

Now that the danger was over, Tails was in genuine pain. The hot water had scalded his back and rear end. He gingerly stepped over to another lake and squatted in the shallows. The frigid water helped to numb the pain and cool off his body. Once he was feeling better, he looked around.

Tails had never seen a place like this. He could see blue sky above him; there was no cavern roof. He was technically outside, but high rock walls surrounded him on every side; he was in a gigantic crater. Short of scaling the outside of the cavern or flying, the geyser was the only way in or out of the crater that Tails knew of.

Tails spotted something on the other end of the bank. He walked over to it and found a stack of very lethal-looking rockets. The remote robot walked over to give its opinion of the new find:

_"Item found: Armor-piercing missile, Federal Military Issue, circa 2982._

_"Usage: This particular missile is designed to be mounted into a submarine and fired at targets up above. They can pierce armor, and they use a lock-on software program. This targeting software is being scanned, copied, and decompiled for installation into a computer of your choice._

_"Status: These missiles are less than ten years old and are in excellent working condition. The targeting software's source code is still compatible with current computers, and all electronic components in the missiles' guidance modules have survived safely within the missiles' watertight shells._

_"Analysis complete."_

Tails smiled. _Bingo_. These missiles might just allow him to get past those battleships. He added them to the miniature arsenal he had amassed and pondered how to get out of the room.

The rock walls arced overhead, so steep that if Tails were to attempt to climb them, he would be hanging by his hands. Tails couldn't climb a grade that steep and the walls were too high to fly over. He thought about the geyser. No, that would be suicide. He had no desire to go back down there. If he didn't get propelled back up by another jet of water, he would almost certainly fall past his point of entry and be unable to fly back up. He thought of the river he had taken into the cavern, and he got an idea. He waded into the lake.

As he got deeper into the lake, he felt a pull; it was taking him to the center of the lake. He began to worry as he sank beneath the surface without warning. He looked down and saw a hole in the lake floor. Given every other way out, this was his only feasible option.

Tails entered the hole at a quick pace. This hole had to lead to somewhere with air. Otherwise, there wouldn't be any force pulling him under in the first place. The only question was how long the hole continued. Patiently holding his breath, he allowed himself to descend further down the rocky channel. Until he got stuck.

Tails became lodged in the channel. Alarmed, he felt around the other side with his feet. The other side felt wider. Perhaps this was the narrowest point of the tunnel. His arms were still on the first side of the hole. His tails were sticking partway out of each side. They must have caused the obstruction.

Very worried, Tails tried to push himself downward. His tails simply caught the narrow point tighter. He would have to fight the current to free his tails and point them straight downward. It was only a few inches. How hard could it be?

Tails struggled to push himself back out of the smaller hole. He wasn't moving. He could feel the weight of the water keeping him securely in the hole like a bath plug. Panic filled his mind and his heart began to beat faster. He wanted so much to call, to shout, to scream for help, but he didn't dare use up his precious oxygen, even as more of it turned to carbon dioxide with every passing second.

As the adrenaline coursed through his veins, Tails gave a mighty push. He could feel water starting to flow past him. He allowed it to straighten his tails out and then gingerly worked his way through the hole. Within a few more long seconds, he finally made it through. He was now traveling faster. Just when he thought his lungs would explode, the tunnel exited into open air, and he gasped a breath just before falling back into water.

Tails surfaced and looked around him, noticing that he had been ejected from the waterway out of a wall. He looked to the bank and saw the Sea Fox moored in the caverns. He had made it through.

Tails stowed the mines and the napalm bombs on board and then proceeded to fit the missiles onto the Sea Fox, with the help of the remote robot. Once the missiles were loaded, the remote robot plugged into the Sea Fox's computer and uploaded the missile targeting software. It formatted the source code to run properly, and Tails configured it to his liking. Once he was ready, Tails activated the motors and headed back to Green Island.

-----

En route to Green Island, Tails plugged the remote robot into the Sea Fox's navigation system. The robot took control of the submersible, serving as Tails' autopilot. Next he accessed his home computer and unlocked the scanning program. According to the soldiers' commands, he was wanted for destroying an Imperial walker in Poloy Forest. Even with the added weapons, Tails knew that in such a small craft, he would have to engage the ships extremely carefully if he wanted to stand a chance of escaping alive.

Tails closed out the program and powered over to Green Island. When he came up behind the destroyer, he turned on the targeting software. Reticles started to appear on screen. The first reticle turned green as it found a target.

_Destroyer; Rudder – Lock Acquired_

The second reticle homed in on area just beyond the first and turned green.

_Destroyer; Propeller Pitch Controller – Lock Acquired_

Tails lifted his gaze, interested. The computer had locked on to a very important part of the destroyer; if it could not control the pitch of its propellers, it could not reverse them and slow down. A plan started to form in his head. A third reticle tried to home in even further beyond the destroyer, but stayed red.

_Carrier; No distinguishable targets; Out of Range_

Perfect. He told his remote robot exactly what he was planning to do. He grabbed an oxygen canister and pushed a button. A hatch opened in the floor, revealing water below. Tails hooked himself up to the oxygen canister and exited the Sea Fox.

He swam alongside the Sea Fox until they were below the stern of the destroyer. Then, the remote robot stopped the Sea Fox and waited obediently for Tails to get between the destroyer and the carrier.

The remote robot locked on to Tails for only a moment, just to see how far away he was. After Tails had reached the desired spot, the robot abandoned the lock on Tails and armed a missile to hit the pitch control mechanism. It watched as Tails rose to the surface.

-----

Tails broke the surface of the water and looked around. The carrier loomed very close behind him. Somebody on the distant destroyer spotted him. The destroyer powered up its engines and barreled at full steam toward Tails.

Spinning his tails around, he rose out of the water and skimmed the surface, heading towards the mighty carrier. A loud clank sounded and the hull began to split open very slowly. He could see a dock inside of the hull. The Imperial carriers carried destroyer-class battleships inside of their hulls. Tails knew that the carrier and the destroyer were now coordinating to trap Tails. It was all up to the remote robot now.

-----

Back on the Sea Fox, the remote robot saw the engines powering up and knew that the time had come to fire its first missile. It pulled the trigger, and the missile shot out of the Sea Fox. It traveled toward its target and hit the hull squarely where the pitch controllers were.

-----

Tails dived under water and swam down and away from the two ships as fast as he could. Under the water, the remote robot launched another missile. It destroyed the rudder hinges and badly warped the rudders. Now the destroyer could not steer.

-----

The captain of the destroyer could see now that they were approaching the carrier rather quickly. They did not need to go so fast now; the fox was probably trapped by now. The captain eased the power back to idle and slid the propeller pitch controller to reverse. Then the captain ramped up the power to full once again.

The destroyer lurched and accelerated forward. Alarmed, the captain checked the propeller pitch. The slider was in reverse, but the computer screen showed that it was still geared for maximum forward propulsion. The captain frantically jiggled the pitch controllers, but to no avail. Dropping the engine to idle would not slow the destroyer in time; it had to be steered away. The captain turned the wheel, but the destroyer stayed its course.

Up ahead, the captain could see the bay doors closing. The carrier crew must have seen the incoming destroyer and panicked. The destroyer made it into the carrier's dock before the doors closed all the way, and they scraped the hull of the destroyer as it powered along. By the time the doors had closed, the destroyer was barreling toward the carrier's inner docks, unable to stop.

The destroyer rammed right into the docks, jarring the soldiers on dock duty into the water. The destroyer continued, its momentum unchecked, and bowled over girders and gantries. Loud screeches of metal on metal blended with the crunch of steel being crushed against steel. The destroyer hit the wall on the other side of the inner docks, breaching the ordinance bay.

Gigantic explosions rocked the deck of the Imperial carrier and blew out large sections of the hull. Everything in the inner shipyard was incinerated as tons of high explosives and napalm went off. A large fireball erupted from the ship and blew a massive gash in the side of the hull. Water rushed in and the carrier began to break apart. The half-melted destroyers got caught under the fallen beams of the carrier, and the entire mass sank in less than an hour. Punching the air in celebration, Tails boarded the Sea Fox, heaved a sigh of relief, and continued on his way to Green Island.


	9. High Stakes

**High Stakes**

Craggy marble mountains soon gave way to rolling hills as Sonic continued northeast. Before long, Sonic was on the outskirts of the city; he watched as suburban neighborhoods shot past him. The houses stood silent, devoid of activity, and the lawns brimmed with overgrowth. Robotnik's troops must have rounded everybody up.

Static crackled over his radio.

"Talk to me."

"Okay, Sonic," Paul answered. "I've hacked into Robotnik's troop manifest. There's a ton more badniks here than were in Green Hills and Marble Hills combined."

Sonic gulped. "Okay, how many exactly?"

"One thousand Spinebugs."

"Spinebugs?" Sonic asked.

"Robotnik took a certain percentage of Motobugs from his fleet and fitted their shells with sharp spines. Attack very carefully. Don't jump on them; do that spin move you showed us earlier instead."

"Okay. Who else is here?"

"I have on the manifest at least two thousand Rollers, maybe more."

"Yikes, that's a lot! How will I recognize them?"

"Well, they attack by rolling around. If I had to describe them, I would say that they resemble armadillos. Be careful, because those suckers are fast."

"Got it. I'm on the south edge of Lesser Mobotropolis. It's deserted of course, but quite posh. Once I get to the wharf I'll see about getting a boat. Sonic out."

-----

Lesser Mobotropolis was a compromise between a big city and a small town. The buildings averaged about ten stories, but there was more green space here than there was in Robotropolis, even before it had been taken over.

Sonic had reached the main city within about twenty minutes and was now exploring Bay Street, the deserted road that ran parallel to the edge of Firestorm Gulf. He could see docks all along the length of the road. There had to be a boat available.

-----

Memories returned to Sonic as he walked down Bay Street. His father used to take him on errands here all the time. Grocery runs, hardware sprees, and all manner of fun shows and sports games here in Lesser Mobotropolis flooded his brain in a wave of nostalgia.

He stopped in his tracks when he saw the grocery store on the street. His mother had always counted on Sonic to bring the shopping list along, because his father simply couldn't be bothered to remember half of the items they had needed. Sonic chuckled to himself over all of the grocery errands that had landed them inexplicably at the hardware store instead. Life had been fun with his father. Sonic had never truly gotten over his sudden disappearance. Nor had he worked past the disappearances of his mother and uncle, either.

-----

Sonic shook himself. _Now is not the time to dwell,_ he thought. He planned to face these memories soon, but not now. Right now, he needed his wits about him.

Sonic looked west, across the gulf. The sun was setting, and its brilliant red-orange light shone through the tall buildings of Robotropolis. With the light washing out the colors around it, Sonic could make out only the silhouettes of the skyscrapers; the scene did not look all that different from what it was before Robotnik took over. Mobotropolis remained alive beneath the new order.

Now Sonic turned his gaze right, towards the north. As he peered down Bay Street he saw a shipyard. He could make out hundreds of craft, from small fishing boats to gigantic cruise ships. Wondering what kind of commerce was still occurring in this deserted city, Sonic continued down the road to investigate.

Sonic's hopes rose as he approached the shipyard. He remembered that there was a bridge connecting the two sides of the gulf. The bridge spanned all the way across the gulf. If Sonic couldn't get a boat, he could always just dash across the bridge. Once he saw the bridge, though, he knew that would be impossible.

A large section of the bridge was raised up about two hundred feet above the rest of the road. It was a gigantic drawbridge. Sonic guessed that Robotnik had left it up to prevent intruders from getting to Robotropolis by using the road. He would have to find a boat.

Sonic scanned the boardwalks for a viable boat. He decided to look for small, aging fishing boats, for obvious reasons: they would be unobtrusive, and nobody would miss them. He wondered if he would have to steal one. If he was lucky, he wouldn't have to; somebody would agree to lend him a boat.

The boats that weren't guarded were old and weathered. None of them looked seaworthy. Finally, he made a promising find. He arrived at a small fishing boat that looked fairly well kept, as if it had been used in the last month or so. He looked at the writing on the hull.

_Hammerhead Charter Fishing – S. Moorefield, captain_.

The boat appeared to be deserted. Sonic climbed aboard and went into the helm room. He decided he would try to start the boat before getting on the radio to his friends. He was searching for the keys to the boat when a voice sounded behind him.

"Hey!! What the hell are you doing??"

A tall young man jumped onto the boat and stood in the doorway to the helm room. He stared Sonic down with serious brown eyes.

"Who are you, and why the hell are you in my boat??" he demanded in a low, hoarse voice.

"You must be S. Moorefield," Sonic replied.

"That's Captain Steve Moorefield to you. Now who are you?"

"I'm Sonic the Hedgehog!" Sonic answered proudly. "Captain."

"Never heard of you. You think you're special or something?" Steve replied, hearing the pride in Sonic's answer.

"Dude! I think I can bring down Robuttnik! I need a boat to get across the gulf."

"Oh no you don't, this boat's not for hire. I'm not getting involved in this shit."

"C'mon man, what are you afraid of? I'll take down anything Robotnik throws our way! It'll be fun!" Sonic replied.

"Is this overthrow a game to you?? People died when Robotnik took over, you know. He may look comical to you. You might laugh at him. But you know, he's not fucking around here. If he finds you, he will kill you. And he will kill me too. You got any friends with you? He'll kill all of them. He doesn't care how much blood he spills. You want my help? I'll help you out with some advice. Hide. I didn't avoid becoming a robot by fighting Robotnik's forces like an idiot. I'm undercover right now and I intend to stay undercover. I hate Robotnik as much as you do, and I wish you luck in whatever lunacy you're planning, but this boat's not for hire, and I think you're a damn fool for believing you can take down Robotnik on your own. You can go now. That's all."

"But"—

"No. No. That's all." Steve moved out of the doorway and gestured back to the dock.

Sonic walked slowly to the door. He did not want to hurt somebody he was trying to save. As he was stepping onto the dock, he heard Steve call him back. Sonic walked back to Steve.

"Here's a tip, blue guy. There's a casino here. I don't know how this is possible, but that casino is still active, even though everybody's either been roboticized or forced into hiding, and there's no one left to play. That's about all I know. Use it in whatever way you find useful, but remember: you didn't hear any of it from me."

"Okay. Thanks, Captain!" Sonic saluted.

"Safe sailing, and let's never meet again!" Steve replied. Sonic dashed away from the docks in search of the casino.

-----

As Sonic continued down Bay Street he saw several fine looking craft moored at the docks that ran alongside. As he looked at the flags, he realized that they were all from different nations. He could see regal vessels from Albion, Spagonia, and Apotos, ships from Chun-Nan and Shamar, even yachts from Adabat and Mazuri. Some very rich people from around the world had come to visit the new Robotnik Empire, and nobody seemed to care that Robotnik had taken over. Sonic hurried on to figure out what was going on.

Sonic soon arrived at a brilliant neon façade. The sign that towered above it read _Casino Splendide_. Despite the desertion of Lesser Mobotropolis, the casino looked open and active. Avoiding the guards at the entrance, Sonic stepped through the gate to have a look at the inside of the complex.

An open-air pathway ran through the casino; various game rooms branched off of it. Robots crawled all around the midway of the casino, but none were playing; they were all absorbed in their various jobs constantly maintaining the casino's cleanliness. Sonic saw a Swatbot walk onto the midway carrying a tray of drinks. Its body was painted black and white in the pattern of a tuxedo. As stealthily as possible, Sonic followed the Swatbot to see who was playing at the casino.

Sonic stopped when the Swatbot arrived at an old but very fancy house. A sign on the house said _VIP Only_. The Swatbot walked across the junction and went into the VIP room. Sonic paused. Swatbots and badniks stood between him and the house, and there was no cover in the forty yards Sonic would have to travel to get to the building. He would never be able to sneak past the guards. Perhaps he could defeat them, but they would surely raise an alarm before he finished, and reinforcements would come down on his head. He decided to find a way around them.

As he walked back he spied a chain link fence. He walked over to it and read a sign he saw: _Keep Out. Construction and Renovation is Underway._ Grinning, Sonic easily climbed over the fence and landed in the red dirt on the other side.

Crouching behind a stack of pipes for concealment, Sonic saw hundreds of badniks working feverishly to build a new addition to the casino. These must have been most, if not all, of the badniks in Lesser Mobotropolis. He saw them building huge structures and installing springs at the bottoms; perhaps they were building giant pinball tables. In the dying light, he skipped past them unnoticed. Before long, Sonic had arrived at the back of the VIP house. He found an air duct at the foot of the building and crawled inside.

Sonic followed the air duct up the building and through the attic until he began to hear voices. He turned right at the junction he had reached and followed the sound to its source. He stopped at a grate in the floor and peered into the room below.

Robotnik was sitting at a poker table with several other people in suits. Sonic saw placeholders at all of the seats and he realized that these were heads of state from all over Mobius. He listened as Queen Alicia II of Albion began to speak.

"President Robotnik, I just want to say again, how very sorry Albion is for the recent terrorist attack that your nation has suffered. Have you caught the terrorists who bombed Colossus?"

"I am afraid the perpetrators are still at large, Your Majesty. However, we are making every effort to catch them."

President Yousef Hamzah of Shamar spoke up. "If we find them in Shamar, we will see to it that they face justice!"

"As will Apotos," added Carolos Euclid, prime minister of Apotos.

Grunts of approval sound all around the table.

"Your support through these uncertain times is greatly appreciated," Robotnik replied. "But come! Let us play, that we may spend at least a few hours enjoying each others' company. After all, we must keep our spirits high in order to weather such difficult trials."

Several players nodded in agreement and began to place their bets around the table. Everybody drew a hand and laid their cards down. Robotnik beat everybody with a straight flush. He raked in the poker chips and Alicia spoke again.

"I say, President Robotnik, what luck you have! I suppose the money is for a good cause anyway… Oh, by the way, I noticed as I was arriving that this place is rather deserted. Where are all your citizens?"

"Oh, another unfortunate occurrence transpired shortly after the terrorist attack on Colossus. It seems our perpetrators attacked in a second wave; they spread through the Federal postal system a potent, highly contagious strain of a virus that can cause death within hours. As a precautionary measure, all citizens on South Island have been quarantined, so as to stop the spread of the virus."

Sympathetic gasps arose from the table. Head of State Giuseppe Lorenzo of Spagonia commented.

"How will the United Federation sustain itself if all of the citizens in its capital city are too sick to work?"

"We could most certainly be better off," Robotnik answered. "But, thankfully, there is more to the Federation than just South Island. I have faith that Station Square, Central City, and various other cities will be able to support Mobotropolis through these tough times. Now, back to the game; I'll wager 50,000 rings on this next play."

This time everybody went all in. Robotnik trumped all of the players with a royal flush, to the applause of everybody at the table.

"Good show, President Robotnik!" Queen Alicia said.

"Why, I cannot believe my luck! I couldn't possibly take all of this," Robotnik replied.

President Nwoye Achebe of Mazuri spoke up. "We all appreciate your selflessness, but you would do well to accept the winnings. It will take quite a lot of money to recover from that attack."

All of the players nodded their heads, happy that their rings were going to a good cause.

"If you insist," Robotnik replied.

"Well, President Robotnik, I would love to continue playing, but, as we wagered all we had, I am afraid we shall have to stop playing for the time being," Alicia said.

"Yes, I am afraid so," Robotnik agreed. "Gentlemen (and Lady), I thank you all for playing tonight, and as a treat, I would like to take you all on a tour of the casino, as well as the construction project that is underway right now."

Robotnik and his guests left the table and exited the room.

-----

Once the coast was clear, Sonic opened the grate and dropped into the room. Now he knew who was playing in the casino. Robotnik was lying to the rest of the world and stealing money to fund his empire. And he was probably playing with a fixed deck as well. Sonic felt he had to do something. But what?

Sonic immediately ruled out killing him, not just for moral reasons, but for practical ones. He had no weapon, and trying to kill Robotnik with his bare hands would be suicide. The Swatbots were likely to shoot him before he could close his hands around Robotnik's neck.

And then there was the problem with the heads of state. As far as they knew, Robotnik was still president, so the assassination attempt would do nothing but galvanize their sympathy for Robotnik.

What if he could get to the heads of state and tell his side of the story? They might believe him if he could come up with proof of Robotnik's treachery. He would have to separate them from Robotnik first, though, as well as make sure that they could return to their countries safely and alert the rest of Mobius. Yes, he would have to convince them by exposing Robotnik's lies.

Sonic crept out and headed for the construction site. Perhaps causing a distraction would allow him to get to the foreigners.

-----

Bright construction lights activated as the sun sank behind Robotropolis and left a brilliant orange glow in the western sky. The halogen lamps harshly illuminated certain areas of the compound, but threw stark shadows across the ground. Sonic crouched in the darkness whenever a badnik went by. Although he maintained complete silence so as not to alert them, he never went near them unless he had to; otherwise, he kept plenty of distance and avoided the robots altogether. Sonic continued until he arrived at another cluster of buildings. He looked up to see what was above him.

He was crouched in the shadow a giant propane tank that must have been twenty feet tall. Behind it was an even larger building. Sonic paused when he saw a Swatbot approach a door at the foot of the building.

-----

Swatbot no. RVG584 stood before the giant building, ready to report for its shift of guard duty. It pushed a button on its right arm that opened a radio link to the inside of the building.

The radio in its head crackled with static for a second or two, then went dead. This was a rather unfortunate setback to the robot. First its laser was running low on power, and now its malfunctioning radio had finally quit on it completely. Even more frustrating, the robot had filed quite some time ago for inspection and repairs. Understandably, Robotnik's takeover _had_ just occurred the day before; he most likely had affairs to set straight before he could shift his priorities to tend to the needs of one expendable Swatbot.

The robot chided itself for its own selfishness. How dare it question the perfect designs of its glorious master? If its radio must go unrepaired, it could contact the vault guard via the backup keypad and console that was installed next to the door. Robotnik alone would decide when the robot's request would be processed and fulfilled. After all, Master, and only Master, knew best.

-----

The robot pushed the call button and spoke.

_"Swatbot RVG584 to relieve RVG583 of Vault Guard duty."_

_"You may proceed to the lift."_

_"Proceeding to the lift, Swatbot RVG584."_

Sonic jumped up and started to run to the door as the Swatbot punched in a code to open it. He jumped into the doorway and tackled the Swatbot. Seconds later, the Swatbot got up and delivered a punch. Sonic jumped out of the way and the Swatbot's fist dented the wall of the lift. Sonic reached up and hit a button to close the doors, so that nobody would see the fight. With a jolt, the lift began to rise.

The Swatbot aimed its wrist-mounted laser at Sonic, who rolled out of the way just before the robot fired. The bolt of energy hit the control panel, which fell to the floor, exposing wires underneath. The robot raised its fist and ran at Sonic, who caught it and slammed it into the wires. Electricity arced all over the Swatbot's body, frying its circuits. The robot sparked and jittered, and then went limp.

As he neared the top, Sonic thought frantically for a way to defend himself against whatever waited beyond the door. Could he use the Swatbot, perhaps?

Thinking quickly, Sonic slammed the arm of the dead Swatbot against the railing until it finally broke off at the elbow. He looked at the inside of the forearm for something, anything that might enable him to fire it. Following a cable that trailed from the arm, he found that it was attached to a short piece of metal that protruded like a lever from the inside of the arm. Perhaps it was a trigger. Pointing the arm at a spot on the wall, Sonic tugged on the cable. The laser fired and a bolt hit the wall. It worked. Sonic pulled the body of the robot out of sight of the doors and drew up against the elevator's blind spot, waiting for the lift to reach the top.

-----

At the security station just outside of the vault, Swatbot RVG583 awaited the lift so that it could be relieved of its duty for the night. Right on time, the lift bell sounded, but the door did not open. It took the Swatbot a few seconds to realize that its reliever had not exited the lift yet. Assuming a state of reserved caution, the guard slowly rose from its seat to see what was going on.

The Swatbot opened the door to find an empty lift. It walked inside, wondering where its comrade had vanished. As it turned back around, it caught sight of the fallen Swatbot. Switching immediately from mild caution to full alert, it whirled around to see Sonic standing in the doorway holding a Swatbot's laser. Sonic fired several shots, hitting both the Swatbot and the wall behind it. Cursing his poor aim, Sonic continued firing until a stray bolt buried itself in the Swatbot's forehead. The robotic soldier keeled over and hit the floor with a crunch.

Once he had pulled both bodies out of the elevator, Sonic crawled up the ceiling hatch and onto the roof of the lift. He climbed onto a ladder in the shaft and then fired the laser at the bolt that held the cable to the car. The lift barreled down the shaft and hit the bottom with a deafening crash. Sonic swung back to the doorway and picked up the body of one of the Swatbots. He opened up the body until he found a tank of oil, which he then poured out all over the shaft ladder, making it impossible to grip and climb up. He closed the door to the shaft and shot the control panels, sealing the door. Once he was certain that nobody could follow him, he stepped outside of the security station.

He stood on one of many gantries that crisscrossed the vault in a grid pattern; beautiful rings shone through the mesh floor of Sonic's gantry, which ran along a wall of the room. There had to be hundreds of billions of rings in the vault, and they cast a vibrant yellow glow all over the ceiling. Sonic had never seen so many rings before. He hopped off of the gantry and jumped in.

Sonic dug through the rings, but they were very light, so even twenty or thirty feet under the surface, Sonic did not get crushed. He continued until he reached the bottom, at which point he guessed he was almost seventy feet below the surface. He easily moved rings out of his way as he waded along the steel floor of the vault. He spied something dull gray through all of the gold. He continued along, pushing the rings aside to find out what was over there. When he got to it, he saw that it was another capsule, standing about twenty-five feet high.

Sonic's radio crackled. "Sonic, this is Flora. Do you read?"

"Loud and clear. What's wrong?"

"We're just checking in with you. Have you found a boat?"

"I tried, but without much luck. I'm at the casino right now. It's still active."

"Really? Who's playing?" Flora asked.

"A bunch of important people from all over Mobius. Robuttnik has the wool pulled over their eyes. They think that Robotnik quarantined the island because of a virus attack. And he's cheating them out of billions of rings in order to fund his empire."

"That's terrible! What can we do?"

"I'm already working on it. I just found the capsule in the ring vault and I'm about to open it. I'm going to set them free and point them to the Marble Hills, so prepare to be joined by a whole bunch of Mobians."

"Good thinking, Sonic. What about Robotnik?"

Sonic paused for a moment. What indeed? He now had a weapon with him. Should he take Robotnik's life?

_Of course I should,_ Sonic thought. He had promised Paul that he would do whatever was necessary to bring him down. If that entailed killing him in front of the world's leaders, then so be it. He would look like a villain, but the UFM would be free once more and Mobius would be safe.

"He's here," Sonic answered in terse hesitance. "I found a weapon. I'm going to shoot him."

Sonic stared into space in disbelief. Had he really just said that?

"I know it's a difficult thing to do, Sonic. But Robotnik has ruined hundreds of thousands of lives within the course of a few hours. If he continues at this rate, he'll have Mobius under his thumb within two weeks! I hate to say this, but the only way to eliminate this threat is to pull that trigger. You may look like a bad guy to the heads of state, but the truth will out. And I want you to know that no matter what the world thinks of you, Paul and I will stand behind you on this."

Sonic felt as if a weight had been lifted off of him.

"Thanks, Flora. I'll do my best," he slowly replied. "Sonic out."

Using his powerful leg muscles, Sonic jumped up on top of the capsule and hit the plunger switch. The capsule blew open, and hundreds of Federal Mobians poured out. Sonic walked up to a purple walrus in a yellow cap.

"Hey, dude, is everybody alright?"

"Yeah, I think we'll be okay. Thank you for freeing us! Who are you?"

"I go by Sonic," Sonic replied. "What's your name?"

"I'm Rotor. I moved here a few years ago from Holoska. How did you manage to avoid Robotnik?"

"Well, it's a long story, but I'll just say I'm faster than your average hedgehog. Now listen: I've got some friends that are camping out in the Marble Hills. That's southwest of here. With them is a bunch of other Mobians that I've freed from capsules in Marble Hills and in the Green Hills. I think you all should get out of here and go join them."

"That sounds like a plan to me, Sonic."

"Okay! Before we go, is there a way out of this vault? I sealed us in so that Robotnik's forces wouldn't be able to get in here."

"Out on the gantry up above, there is an air vent. We can get up there by using a ladder on the wall of this vault."

"Okay! Hey, everybody!" Sonic called out. "There's a ladder that leads to an air vent at the top of this building. Rotor and I will lead the way, and we'll get everybody out of here."

Eager to escape Robotnik's clutches, the Mobians followed Sonic and Rotor. Soon they were all up the ladder and crowded onto the grid. Sonic opened the air vent and peered out.

He looked out over the construction zone and turned his attention to the outside wall of the vault. Thankfully, he could see a utility ladder running down from the air vent, which was very fortunate, as there was a fifty foot drop from the vent to the ground.

"Hey! I think I found something!"

One Mobian had found a room containing rack upon rack of inert Swatbots. Sonic stepped inside to have a look. He threw a lever and cut the power in the room so that the robots couldn't activate.

"Are there any strong people here? I'll need your help."

With the assistance of some strong Mobians, Sonic began breaking off the arms of the Swatbots and handing them to people. He told them to pull the firing cable in order to work the trigger. Within thirty minutes, enough of the escapees knew how to prime, aim, and fire the laser cannons. The group was now armed.

Sonic saw another array of circuit breakers. He realized that they controlled the power in all areas of the casino. He fried all of them with a few shots from his weapon, and all of the lights went out. Moonlight filtered in through the vent and dimly illuminated the vault. It was time to leave.

-----

Robotnik was escorting his guests across the construction site when the lights went out and the surrounding area plunged into darkness. Dismayed murmurs escaped the lips of the heads of state, and they stopped walking to avoid stumbling.

"Hmm. That's quite strange," Robotnik thought aloud. "Not to worry, everybody. I will see to this problem."

He radioed to Swatbot RVG584, but received no signal, not even static. Robotnik blinked.

"That damn radio. So, _that_ was the Swatbot that filed a repairs request a while ago. Damn."

He addressed his guests.

"Well, it seems that there is a bit of confusion up at the vault. Why don't we detour over that way and I'll show it to you while I am sorting this out. Carefully now, mind your step…"

-----

Once Sonic got everybody down, he joined the rest of them and spoke to Rotor.

"Hey, Rotor, I saw a propane tank as I was going in. Is it full?"

"Yeah, it's full. And, it's connected by pipeline to an even more massive propane reservoir that's sitting beneath the vault."

"Okay, Rotor. Here's the deal: my friends will be waiting for all of you. Stay together, and make sure that all of the mothers, children, and unarmed Mobians stay on the _inside_ of the group. On your way out, shoot any robot you see. The badniks contain fellow Mobians that can join you as you go, and the Swatbots have laser cannons that you can use to arm newcomers. Can you get everybody out?"

"Sure thing, Sonic," Rotor answered.

"Okay, do it as quickly as possible, because when I expose Robuttnik, all hell is breaking loose."

"Got it! Everybody, follow me this way, quietly."

The Mobians all followed Rotor, their weapons raised. Sonic was sure they would be alright; he would see to it personally that Robotnik didn't notice the escape.

-----

Sonic moved across the construction area until the propane tank was in his line of sight. He fired the laser at it from about five hundred feet away. The tank burst and exploded, and the fire traveled down the pipeline and under the vault. A second later, the inner tank ruptured, and a massive cloud of fire consumed the entire vault.

Rings rained down all around Sonic as he searched for the way out of the casino. He was looking back at the fireball that had risen several hundred feet into the air when he bumped into something soft and round. He looked up and saw Doctor Robotnik staring down at him, Swatbots at his side, his triumphant sneer turned into a demonic grin by the firelight.

"Snooping as usual, I see!" Robotnik shouted. The foreign leaders drew back, startled by the explosion and Sonic's sudden appearance.

Without hesitation, Sonic lifted his laser and leveled it straight at Robotnik's chest. He stared him down for an instant, and then pulled the firing cable.

_Click._

Sonic's eyes went wide as his only hope at stopping Robotnik evaporated like the burning propane behind him. Cursing, he threw the weapon to the ground and appealed to Robotnik's guests.

"You all are in danger, here! You need to get out! Robotnik's not broke; he took over the UFM and now he's stealing your money to use for his empire. Look at the rings falling around you! That's your money! Don't let him have any!"

The leaders all stared at Sonic confused, wondering if they should believe him.

"Enough! I have had it with you, filthy rodent. Swatbots! What the hell are you hesitating for?! Have you forgotten that your orders are to shoot on sight?? Do it! Now!!!"

Appalled gasps sounded from the group as the Swatbots raised their weapons.

President Zheng Han Fu of Chun-Nan confronted Robotnik.

"Stop!! What are you doing?! You would fire upon your own citizens?? Does this hedgehog speak the truth?"

"Indeed he does, President Zheng Han," Robotnik replied. "You have entered the Robotnik Empire, and now, I am afraid you cannot leave. Swatbots! Roboticize the foreigners, and kill the hedgehog."

At that moment, the light of the explosion faded, pitching the area into flickering semi-darkness. Sonic went up to the group of guests.

"Everybody run!"

Sonic dashed away from Robotnik, with the foreign leaders close behind. He went behind the group and kicked up clouds of dust to confuse the Swatbots. Satisfied with his smokescreen, he told the heads of state that he would draw fire away from them; they were to keep running and meet him outside of the casino.

Red laser bolts flew all around as Sonic ran frantically from Robotnik, cursing his luck. He had missed his opportunity to eliminate Robotnik, and now, the lives of Mobius's most important people were in terrible danger.

But there was still hope. Robotnik had played his hand and exposed his treacherous empire to the world. If Sonic could get the heads of state to safety, they could alert the rest of Mobius, and Robotnik would be finished.

Sonic spotted a quarry ahead. Perhaps he could escape through there.

-----

Robotnik assessed the situation.

"Sonic must think I'm so preoccupied with him that I'll overlook the escaping heads of state. Swatbots, divide yourselves; lay down fire to deter the foreigners!"

Robotnik twisted an orange whisker.

"And while we're at it, let's add some stopping power to this assault. Use the explosive rounds. That will sort them out."

-----

The foreign leaders ran without looking back, not daring to stop for fear that they might be caught. For a while, the semi darkness helped them to evade notice. They made good progress until, without warning, an explosion kicked up the dust ten feet in front of them. They all flinched and stopped running. As the smoke cleared, they looked around and saw that they were surrounded by Swatbots. Game over.

-----

Sonic was about to turn back when he heard a muffled crack. He turned around and something exploded not twenty feet from where he was standing. Beyond the explosion he saw Swatbots carrying bazookas. He wasted no time; he started running along the edge of the quarry, dodging the explosions all around him. One shell impacted so close, he could have sworn that it was right beside him. As he shied away from the blast, he slipped and fell over the edge, landing in a fast stream. The stream caught him and pulled him towards the entrance to a cave. Before Sonic could get ashore, he was rushed underground by the torrential stream.

After a dark, wet ride down the underground river, the stream emptied into a pool. Sonic went under for a moment and scraped his back against the bottom. He struggled to his feet and waded to shore through the freezing water. As soon as he reached dry ground, his vision blurred, and he collapsed on the floor of the chamber.


	10. Wind and Water

**Wind and Water**

Tails made landfall on Green Island. The sun was setting, casting the island's eastern face into shadow. A strong gust blew Tails' fur out of array; he could see trees bending in the wind. He wondered why Green Island was always so windy; there were no storm clouds around. Shrugging it off, Tails exited the Sea Fox and ventured into the forest.

Even within the shelter of the forest, strong winds rustled the trees and the bushes as Tails made his way around the island. His two tails flapped around in the gales, and Tails shivered. Sighing, he kept searching the island; daylight was fading, which meant that it would only get colder.

-----

Darkness continued to fall as evening crept over Cocoa Island and its satellites. Tails faced the prospect of camping out on the island. Fatigue was setting in, and it was getting hard to see, so he would not be able to search effectively for much longer anyway. Would he be safe from attack if he stayed here?

Tails decided to go around the forested peak of Green Island's mountain. Perhaps he would find more light on the other side, and he could keep looking.

As he crossed to the west side of Green Island and stepped into the sun, he could see that it was almost below the horizon. He was out of light; he would have to return to the Sea Fox or risk staying out here. Nothing more could be done. Not feeling up to walking around the mountain, he decided to fly over it.

As he rose into the air, Tails felt a strange pull up the mountain. The air was more peaceful than it had ever been, so Tails knew it was not wind blowing him upward. It felt almost gravitational, and at the same time, a compulsion to go up the hill. Tails could not figure out what it was.

When Tails neared the peak, he could see a large spot of blinding light. The brilliant white glow was coming from a point in the woods almost directly below him. Tails descended and walked over to the source of the light.

Tails arrived at the source to find a clear, diamond-like gem. It was a white Chaos Emerald. He bent down to pick it up and felt as if he was holding a block of ice. As soon as he touched the Emerald, the brilliant light died down to a soft glow that was easier on his eyes. This had to be what he was looking for.

He turned to the Chaos Emerald once more for guidance. Light swirled inside of the gem and slowly formed a shape. Tails saw many tall trees, interspersed with boulders and rock formations. Cliffs rose up in the distance, cutting off the forest from the rest of the island. What was this place? Tails had never seen such a part of the island before. How was he supposed to get there in the first place?

The vision began to fade from the Emerald, dismaying Tails.

"No! Wait! What am I supposed to do??"

As the image of the mysterious woods faded, the viewpoint rose up above a cliff. Tails peered over the edge to see a burned out forest on the other side.

He was seeing Poloy Forest. He recognized the cove in which he had defeated the robotic walker. All throughout that battle, he had been at the edge of this other forest without realizing it. It was too bad he didn't know how he would get past the cliff. The last traces of the vision faded from the gem, and Tails doubted that he would see anything else.

Tails decided that he was finished here on Green Island. Having found out where he needed to be, Tails saw no point in remaining behind, especially since his search once again turned up no weapons, which he found very strange.

He planned to gather what he had found and take the Sea Fox back to his house. He could sleep once he was home.

Tails took the Chaos Emerald with him and smiled to himself; in the rapidly approaching darkness, the gem would provide all the light he needed. Anticipating sleep, Tails made his way down to the beach, boarded the Sea Fox, and headed for his house.

-----

Tails checked the time as soon as he returned; it was about 8:00 in the evening. He looked longingly at his bed.

"I wonder if I can afford to sleep all night," he wondered aloud.

_"Unlikely,"_ the vulpine little robot replied. _"Robots do not sleep, and thus have no trouble working for long stretches of time. It is advisable that you rest for a short time to replenish your energy, but do not allow too much time to pass."_

"So… what? Two hours?" Tails suggested.

_"Two hours should suffice. Alarm will activate at: 2203 hours, South Island Time."_

Tails yawned deeply.

"Thanks, buddy," Tails said sleepily.

He rolled over for a minute, and then turned to the robot.

"Hey, do you think we can do it?"

The robot tilted its head.

_"It? What parameter is 'it'? Please specify."_

"I mean, do you think we can fight them off?"

_"The odds of success are approximately twenty-thousand, five hundred seventy-six… to one."_

"Never mind…" Tails sighed.

_"You asked,"_ the robot replied.

They sat in silence for a few seconds.

_"Master,"_ the robot began.

"I keep telling you, just call me Tails," Tails replied.

_"Yes, Tails,"_ the robot answered. _"What is my name?"_

This caught Tails off guard. He had never really bothered to call it anything besides "Remote Robot" because he had not implemented extensive social intelligence into it. It was designed with analysis in mind, not conversation. He had talked to it before, discussing more than just the finer points of mechanics. But never had the robot sustained a non-mechanical topic for this long with such coherence. It was asking him for a name, for crying out loud, and now Tails felt absolutely terrible for not having thought of one.

"Um, why do you want to know?" Tails asked.

_"It would be useful to have a name that lends itself to easier utterance than 'Remote Robot'."_

Oh, so that was it. The robot only wanted an easier name for Tails to call it by.

_"Also, you have spoken to me about individuals whom you term 'friends'. This concept does not make perfect logical sense to me, but you have said that everybody needs friends. As your loyal robot, I consider it a duty to fulfill that need by being not only your tool, but your friend as well."_

Tails raised his eyebrows in surprise. Was this emotion? From a robot? The remote robot seemed only to consider friendship as one of its duties, but to Tails, it seemed like something fairly close to emotion.

"How about Robbie?"

_"Robbie?"_

Tails laughed nervously. "It's from a book I read. Isaac Asimov. It doesn't have to be Robbie…"

_"I like the name 'Robbie'."_

"Okay! Robbie it is!"

_"Much gratitude. Good night, Tails."_

"Good night, Robbie."

-----

Tails awoke to the sound of shrill beeping two hours later. He sat up and clicked a button on the Robbie, silencing it. Yawning again, he stepped out of bed and stretched, trying to remember what he was planning to do.

The vision of the forest returned to his conscious mind a second later. Crossing the room, Tails picked up a map of the island from his desk and located his house. According to the map, the wood he wanted to reach was called Caron Forest. There was no way to get in from Poloy Forest; steep ridges blocked it off. He would have to find a way around them.

After a moment of scanning, Tails found a tunnel on the map. One end of it exited into Caron Forest. From there, it wound around underneath Polly Mountain until it joined the Phlegethon Cavern network. He could reach the forest if he went back to the caverns and continued under the mountain.

Tails was in luck. Last time he was in Phlegethon Cavern, he had seen the fork in the tunnel, so he knew where to go now. It was going to be quite a hike though.

As he studied the entry point of the tunnel, he noticed a lake beside it, marked _Lake Crystal_. It fed into a river that ran all the way out to Rocky Lake. Tails could simply hop into the Sea Fox and reach Polly Mountain via the river.

After he refueled the tank, Tails took with him the green and white Chaos Emeralds, Robbie, and some grenades. He cranked the ignition and the engine turned over with a roar. Satisfied, Tails dived, and three minutes later, he was underneath Rocky Lake and headed for the river.

-----

Tails skirted the shoreline of Rocky Lake, looking for the stream that would take him to Lake Crystal. He soon found the mouth of a river; it had to be the right one. Tails turned the Sea Fox upstream and opened the throttle. The Sea Fox lurched forward and powered upstream without a problem.

Concerned about the noise he was making, Tails slowed the engine down a bit, lest there be robots patrolling the area. He jumped in his seat as a flock of birds noisily flew out of a distant tree. Birds didn't fly at night; something must have disturbed them. Tails cut the engine off and dropped a makeshift anchor to stop the current from pushing him back down the river.

He waited in dark silence for the threat to pass. He had no idea where the enemy was or how many were around. Tails was about to start going when he heard two cracks, one after the other. Suddenly, two twenty-foot plumes of water erupted on either side of him. He had been spotted. Eager to get away, he weighed anchor, fired up the engine, and shot forward.

Three small boats floated ahead of Tails. He could make out Swatbots at the helms. The ones not driving were carrying bazookas.

The Swatbots launched a volley of bazooka rounds. Tails swerved all over the river as water plumes exploded all around him. He looked in dismay as the three boats closed in on him, from port, starboard, and fore of the Sea Fox.

Tails increased speed as the three attack boats approached him from different directions. Realizing the danger, the two boats on the left and right of him turned away to avoid a collision. Tails fired his Vulcan cannon at the attack boat ahead of him and swerved away at the last second. As he circled back around, he could see water pouring into the leaking skiff. The heavy Swatbots sank like stones into the dark river. One down, two to go.

Tails turned to face the remaining attack boats. He started firing the Vulcan cannon once again. One or two bullets ripped through the hulls, but none struck below either boat's water line. Tails swerved away to avoid collisions, but the skiffs angled toward the Sea Fox.

One boat T-boned the Sea Fox from the port side, and the little submersible drifted off toward the eastern bank of the river. His eastward motion stopped abruptly when the second boat rammed his starboard side. Tails continued north, upstream, while the attack boats closed in on either side of him. The Swatbot pilots pulled even with the Sea Fox and rammed it. Tails was trapped.

Tails fought the skiffs that ground against either side of his vessel. He couldn't break free, no matter what he did. Up ahead, he saw a bank of sharp crags coming up just to the right of his path. This gave him an idea.

Tails turned the rudder to the left, fighting the power of the boat on his port side, who returned pressure in kind. Then, without warning, Tails steered to the right, throwing off his attackers with the sudden change of direction. Now his starboard-side pursuers were trapped and unable to break out. They slammed into the crags with incredible force. One skiff remained.

One of the Swatbot crew took advantage of the close-quarters fight and leveled its laser cannon at Tails' head. Tails saw what it was about to do and slowed way down as laser bolts hit the water just ahead of Tails. He powered out into the center of the river and sped ahead of the last boat.

Tails looked back and froze in horror. The attack boat was following him, and the Swatbots on board were preparing to launch more bazookas. With a prayer, Tails deployed a mine into the water, hoping that the Swatbots would not see it.

They didn't.

The blast from the mine catapulted the boat ten feet out of the water. As it flipped forward through the air, Tails saw a black, gaping hole where the mine had detonated. The attack boat hit the water upside down. The Swatbots sank below the surface and didn't come up.

_"Masterfully played,"_ Robbie remarked.

"They're up the creek now," Tails replied.

Tails soon arrived at Lake Crystal. He sailed across the large, clear lake and beached the Sea Fox at the foot of Polly Mountain.

"Here goes nothing," Tails muttered.

_"Best of luck,"_ Robbie answered.

Gathering his things, Tails and Robbie stepped into the small entrance to Phlegethon Cavern; ready to explore the inside of the mountain.


	11. One By One

**One By One**

**7 October, 2987**

Sonic's father, Jules, had been abroad for a full week; he was discussing his newest novel with a group of honors students at Spagonia University, thousands of miles away from the UFM. He was all set to return on a Thursday, courtesy of Zephyr Airways. When he had last called home, he had told his wife, Bernie that his boarding call would come any minute. He was expecting to reach Central City, his transfer point, within a few hours. That was the last call Sonic ever remembered hearing from him.

-----

Bernie sat in the recliner, watching television with her son to pass the time until Jules called her from Central City, like he promised he would. Minutes became hours, and after she sent Sonic to bed, she looked at the clock. It was clear that Jules's time of transfer had come and gone; and yet still there was no call. Perhaps he had just forgotten; Jules was a pretty absent-minded person.

No, she didn't trust that feeling. Deeply concerned, she decided to call Central City International Airport and ask if Jules's flight had come in yet.

-----

Sonic was still awake when he heard the phone leave the hook. Curiosity got the better of him and he rolled out of bed. He stood in the doorway so that he could remain out of sight and still hear news of his father.

"Yes, I'd like to know if a certain flight has arrived yet," Bernie spoke into the phone.

There was a pause as the other end answered her query.

"Okay, can you switch me over to Arrivals and Departures, please? Thank you."

Bernie waited as the airport directed her call to another department. After a moment, she lowered the phone. She must have been put on hold.

"Sonic, school starts early. I know you're out there," she challenged.

Sonic stepped out of the hallway and approached the kitchen.

"Man, tomorrow's Friday, Mom. Nobody cares on Friday."

"Come on, kiddo, I want you to do well," she replied. "You gotta have a future."

"It's only sixth grade!" Sonic chuckled. "Even the teachers don't care right now."

Bernie sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Hey, Mom, that's my job now. I'm getting into my teens pretty soon. But look, that's not why I'm out here right now."

"You want to hear if Dad's alright, don't you?" Bernie asked.

"Yeah. Mind if I stay up?"

"Well, I guess so, but I'm on hold right now. We'll stay up for the news, but after that, straight to bed. Capisce?"

"Got it."

Bernie smiled at him. "Hey, you want it on speaker phone, so we can both hear it?"

"Sure," Sonic replied, his voice cracking as he said so.

"Your voice is changing," Bernie commented, amused.

A beep sounded over the speaker and a voice greeted them.

"_Arrivals and Departures, KCTR. How can I help you?"_

"Yes, I would like to know if Zephyr 402 has arrived yet," Bernie asked.

Silence settled once more as the person on the other end checked the flight database. A few seconds later, an answer sounded over the phone.

"_Zephyr 402 faced a two hour traffic delay on the tarmac. They're in the air right now. They should arrive here at about four in the morning, central time. Unfortunately, rainy weather is forecast to hit us at about four thirty, so it is likely that Zephyr might make some flight cancellations. I apologize for the inconvenience."_

"Oh, it's not a problem," Bernie answered, relieved. "Thank you for responding."

"_No problem, ma'am. Family coming home?"_

"My husband."

"_Ah. He'll be fine, ma'am. You should rest now. Good night."_

Bernie put the phone back on the hook and looked over at Sonic.

"Well, okay, then. It looks like he's just going to get back a little late," she said. "Alright, you remember the deal. Off to bed now."

-----

**8 October, 2987**

As soon as the bell rang, Sonic was on his feet and out the door of the school building, as he always was at the end of the day. He breathed in the lazy, Friday afternoon air, and then took off at an incredible speed.

Sonic overtook all of the school buses that branched away from the school as they embarked on their daily trek through Mobotropolis's urban jungle. What suckers, he thought. Those kids relied so heavily upon such clunky, sickly yellow sardine cans to transport them to school every day. He felt much freer on his feet. He abandoned the sidewalk for the road and sped out of the city to his home in the Green Hills.

-----

Jules still was not home when Sonic arrived. He asked Bernie about it, and she told him that Jules was still waiting in Central City for the rain to clear.

"Well, at least he'll be home soon," Sonic replied, turning on the television.

Sonic was about to change the channel from the news to one of his favorites, but he stopped in his tracks when he read the story caption:

_Breaking News: Central City Airport Bomb Scare_

The news woman began to speak.

"… and the threat has passed, according to security officials at Central City International Airport. An arrest has been made, and although the airport has temporarily frozen its operations, flights are expected to resume very soon. With us now is Mr. Joseph Terry, head of security for the airport. Mr. Terry, is there anything you would care to tell us about the arrest?"

Terry sat in a windowless concrete room as he spoke to the news crew.

"Well, we found our suspect thanks to his credit card. He called in the threat on a credit-only pay phone, which is a very new investment here at Central International. We traced the credit card number, and pulled him aside for questioning. When we searched his baggage, we found a very suspicious contraption in it, which our bomb disposal unit neutralized right away. That's pretty much how we got him."

"Thank you, Mr. Terry," the woman replied. "You're watching MNN on Channel 54. This is Scarlet Garcia, reporting out."

Sonic and Bernie stared at each other in disbelief. Was Jules going to be okay?

Bernie picked up the kitchen phone and dialed the number of the airport.

"Hello, I called last night. Did Zephyr 402 come in on time?"

Sonic stared as Bernie received her answer.

"Thank goodness. Can you check the passenger manifest for Zephyr 67? That's the connecting flight for my–"

Unintelligible dialogue sounded from the other end.

"Well, I understand that you're very busy, but I'm worried here."

Bernie became increasingly exasperated. Sonic could tell that she was receiving no help.

"I'm aware of the flap going on, yes. I saw it in the news."

Desperation crossed Bernie's face.

"Does it take that much time to look somebody up? Surely, you can tell me if my husband is–"

She pulled the phone away from her face.

"They hung up on me," she muttered.

"Mom, don't be afraid, okay?" Sonic responded. "Dad will be fine. You know how our family is; we get shit done!"

"Sonic! Language!" Bernie chided him. Sonic shrank back for a moment, but then he saw Bernie smile at him.

"Aww, come here, kiddo," she pulled him into a hug. "Thanks for reassuring me, honey."

-----

Shortly after dinner, a knock sounded at the door. Sonic opened it up and found himself facing the police. Two Swatbots stood imposingly on the front porch. The one in front addressed Sonic.

_"Greetings, young hedgehog. Is your mother currently home?"_

"Um, yes sir, she is," Sonic replied, wondering why the police were interested in his house.

Bernie appeared in the doorway and nodded at them.

"Evening, officers, come on in. Is there a problem?"

_"That remains to be seen,"_ the Swatbot replied as it led its comrade into the living room. _"And that is the purpose of our presence. To find out if there is indeed a problem. We would like to ask some questions of you. If you do not wish to answer, silence is optional, and will not be used against you. Do you understand?"_

"Yes," Bernie answered.

_"Then we shall begin. Your name is Bernadette, correct?"_

"Yes."

_"Do you have a husband whose name is Jules?"_

"Yes."

_"Did Jules recently fly into Central City on a Zephyr flight?"_

"Zephyr 402, officers," Bernie replied. "But why? Why is this important?"

The Swatbots did not answer. They merely looked at each other. Sonic guessed that they were comparing notes via radio. After a full minute, they nodded, and the chief Swatbot turned back to face them.

_"It seems we have a problem."_

"What do you mean? Why are you here right now?"

_"All in good time, madam. All in good time. We ask that you remain calm. Unfortunately, given your answers, we need you to accompany us to an undisclosed location for further discussion."_

Bernie looked at them warily.

"Sonic gets to come too. I don't want to leave him all by himself."

_"Not permissible. The remainder of our questioning demands the disclosure of classified information. You are the only one in your family who is allowed to know. Also, he is a minor. Our planned meeting place is not for children."_

"Well, what am I supposed to do then?"

_"If you have no alternative, my partner can provide adequate supervision for your son."_

"Hold that thought," Bernie replied. "I'll call up Uncle Chuck."

Bernie picked up the phone and dialed the number of Sonic's uncle. She explained the situation to him, and listened patiently to Chuck's answer. Her face was full of relief when she hung up.

"Okay, Uncle Chuck should be here in about thirty minutes. Can you wait that long, Sonic?"

"Yeah, Mom. I'll be okay."

"Okay. Good boy," Bernie responded. "This is all a mistake, honey. I'll talk to these guys and sort it all out. And Central City should be resuming flights now, so Dad might be home really soon."

"Okay, Mom."

"Okay. I love you," Bernie kissed Sonic's cheek and rose to follow the Swatbots out to their police car. As they pulled away, Sonic assured himself that nothing was wrong, and that he would see his parents again _very_ soon.

-----

**20 June, 2990**

Sonic's performance in school had declined sharply. Neither Jules nor Bernie had returned yet, and he began to wonder if they were still alive. Every call to the police department or to the airport yielded the same outcome: the person on the other end would refuse to release any information and deny that such a name had ever come up in their institution. His parents were so distant to him now that Sonic suffered in school, prompting his uncle to pull him out and teach him at home. Because Sonic was so far behind, Chuck was still teaching him even in June.

"Sonic. Buddy. You still awake?" Chuck asked him for the fifth time that evening.

Sonic looked at Uncle Chuck with a blank expression.

"Come on, Sonic," Chuck pleaded. "It's late, and I know this is hard, but you've got to concentrate."

"Heh. Easier said than done, Chuck," Sonic answered, annoyed.

"Sonic," Chuck answered. "I want you to do well. No matter how long we want to wait for them to come back, time isn't gonna slow down for us. You're almost fifteen! Be strong, man!"

"You don't get it, do you?" Sonic challenged. "It's been almost three years since I last heard from Mom or Dad. Nobody will tell us how they're doing."

"Okay, that's a hard weight to carry," Chuck conceded. "But when you finish school (and maybe college) and get a job, your boss isn't going to care about our family's problems."

"And what the hell does that matter to me??" Sonic snapped. "Is having a job more important than having a family? Mom and Dad have been gone for _three years_! They could be dead for all we know. Screw my career options, I want to see my fucking parents!"

Sonic glared at Chuck for a few silent, uneasy seconds. Finally, Chuck looked down.

"I'm sorry, Sonic. I didn't mean to make light of what happened," he apologized. "I miss 'em, too. But they must be alive, I'm sure of it. You know what I've said before."

Sonic looked up and met Chuck's eyes.

"You know how our family is," Sonic began.

"We get shit done!" Chuck answered.

With tearful smiles, uncle and nephew pulled each other into a hug.

"Hey, Sonic, what say I teach you to drive tomorrow?" Chuck asked.

"But I'm not fifteen yet," Sonic answered.

"You will be in three days. Think about it. Tearing up that road, winning races, picking up girls…"

"Yep. With our amazing seventy-horsepower minivan," Sonic jested with a grin.

"That's the spirit," Chuck responded. "Hell, a charming guy like _you_ could get chicks with just a go kart!"

Sonic chuckled at that.

"Okay, I am going to run to the store now. I should be back in about half an hour. Goodnight, Sonic!"

"Goodnight, Uncle Chuck."

-----

**21 June, 2990**

Sonic woke up the next morning to find that he had overslept. Uncle Chuck hadn't come in to wake him up. Maybe he was still asleep.

A horrible sinking feeling set in when Sonic found Chuck's bed empty. He stepped outside of the house and looked around. The minivan was there, but the old pickup that Chuck had taken was still gone. Had Chuck come back at all?

Nervous, Sonic searched the yellow pages until he found the Grocery Mart that his family usually visited. He dialed the number and waited for them to pick up.

"_You've reached Grocery Mart. How can I help you?"_

"Hey, it's Sonic. I think you know my family, we used to come to you all the time."

"_Hey there, Sonic! What's up?"_

"Did my uncle come to your store last night to buy groceries?"

"_Chuck? Sure did. He picked up some groceries, and went to the pharmacy to refill his prescription."_

"And then he left?"

"_Yep. Why do you ask?"_

Sonic paled as he answered.

"He's not here. He didn't get back yet."

"_Hmm. That's not good. Maybe he had a wreck?"_

"Oh god, I hope not!"

"_I can notify the police that he's missing if you want."_

"Thanks! I would love that!" Sonic answered.

"_Okay, they'll show up soon to talk to you. It'll be okay."_

Sonic hung up and breathed a sigh of relief.

-----

When the police arrived, Sonic told them everything he knew: Chuck's transactions at the Grocery Mart, the time of departure, and the make and model of the truck. The Swatbots recorded the data and promised Sonic that they would contact him very soon with more updates about his uncle.

"Wait!" Sonic said. "Don't go, yet!"

The police turned back to him.

_"Can we be of further assistance?"_

"Where is my mom?" Sonic asked. "You led her out of the house two and a half years ago. Where is she now? Why haven't I heard from her? Is she alright?"

The Swatbots paused for a moment.

"Identification, please. We require at least her first name."

"Bernadette," Sonic answered. "Her name is Bernadette. But she always goes by 'Bernie'. She left with you guys on October 8th, 2987. Remember her?"

The robots stood inert for a moment, scanning silently through their databanks.

_"404 Error. Record not found."_

"WHAT???" Sonic burst out. "But how?? She left because the police told her to!"

_"The Mobotropolis Police Department contains no record of such an event. There never was a hedgehog named Bernadette that was led away on October 8, 2987."_

"Yes there was!" Sonic shouted. "She's my mother! My family members have been disappearing, one by one! Where the hell are they??"

The Swatbots drew back slightly. The right palm of each one opened up to reveal tasers beneath.

_"Maintain control, young hedgehog. We are aware of your frustration, but we are doing our best. My partner and I searched and cross-referenced the databanks of all precincts on South Island. We turned up no results. Please do not allow your emotions to escalate into violence. No good can come of it. Remain calm and allow us to locate your uncle."_

"One more thing," Sonic insisted. "What about my dad?"

_"Your father?"_

"His name is Jules," Sonic explained. "He was scheduled to arrive back home the night before Mom left. But as far as I know, he never got past Central City International Airport. Can you tell me why?"

_"Central City is far from the jurisdiction of the MPD. We have no authority there. Your query is a matter for the airport to handle. We apologize for your losses. We must go now."_

"Alright, thanks…"

Sonic waited until the Swatbots were disappearing down the road.

"… for nothing."

-----

**23 June, 2990**

The ringing of the kitchen telephone jarred Sonic awake. His worry returned to him and he leapt out of the bed to answer it.

"Hello?" he asked apprehensively.

_"Good morning. This is the office of the Mobotropolis Police Department, calling regarding news of your uncle, Charles."_

"News of Chuck?" Sonic asked, daring to get his hopes up. "My god! Did you find him??"

_"We found his truck."_

Sonic's face fell.

"… And??"

_"It was off the road, and very badly damaged."_

"Oh, no…" Sonic breathed. "No, he can't be…"

_"We are very certain that he is still alive. Inspection of the vehicle revealed no trace of blood or a body. We may simply have yet to find a body, but there is a possibility that Charles is still alive and just missing."_

"But if he's alive, then why would he bother trying to hide? Wouldn't he want to be found and helped?"

_"Our team is pondering that question as well. Regretfully, no additional details are available. Apologies for any inconvenience this has caused you. Good day."_

Sonic hung up the phone, not feeling much better than he did before.

"Happy birthday to me…" Sonic trailed off.

-----

Sonic stood on top of a hill near to his house. A stiff wind rolled in from the west, making him shiver violently. A storm cloud loomed in the distance, out over the sea.

So this was it, he thought. All of his guardians had fallen off the face of Mobius, and nobody seemed to know what had happened to them. Why had this happened? What had he done to deserve such isolation?

"Well??" he asked aggressively, challenging the emptiness around him. "Wanna tell me what I did??"

His breath shortened as his frustration and anger welled up from the bowels of his heart. As he hunched over, his shoulders began to shake and his fists clenched and unclenched. He felt the fur on his spines standing on end. Was he doing that, or was it the electricity in the air? Maybe it was both.

"Come on! I asked you a question!" Sonic pressed, not addressing anybody in particular. "So answer me, dammit!"

It seemed as though the planets had aligned to torment Sonic by cutting him off from his loved ones. The unfairness of it all filled him with rage. Running away would not ease his pain this time; escape would offer him no peace. He felt an irrepressible urge to _kill_ something, to choke the life out of it, utterly destroy it, and toss its lifeless shell callously away, in the same manner that fate had conspired to rob him of life and throw him away. Unable to contain himself, he threw his hands up into the air.

"WHYYYYYYYYYY???" he roared with all of the breath in his lungs. Taking in another big breath, he abandoned his efforts to form actual words and simply yelled as loud as he possibly could. Then, he collapsed to his hands and knees, as though the shout alone had been so powerful that it spent his energy.

A repulsive feeling grew in the depths of Sonic's stomach. Knowing what was about to happen, Sonic simply allowed the material to travel back up his esophagus. He retched, and vomit splattered the grass in front of him.

Hot, salty, tears filled his eyes as the sour taste of bile festered in his mouth. He shuddered as a cold wind gusted around him. His family was gone. He would have done anything to get them back, but he felt that they were well and truly gone.

Sonic continued sobbing as he realized that they might not even be dead. Even if they were alive, nothing he had done had worked. All he knew for sure was that he missed them all so much.

As the sky darkened, Sonic calmed down and lifted his head. His feeling was disappearing. He felt almost numb, as though he had just discharged his anger and rage like a bolt of lightning. As his breath steadied, he shuffled away from the pool of vomit and lay on his back, facing the gray, billowing clouds above him.

_Chuck was right,_ Sonic thought to himself. There was nobody left to take care of him now. That only meant that the task now fell to him to take care of himself. His needs wouldn't wait until his parents returned. His only option was to not give up and carry on living.

Feeling better now, Sonic relaxed and looked up at the clouds, waiting for the rain to wash his face.

_Drip._

Sonic twitched as a drop of cold water splashed onto his right cheek. It would start pouring very soon.

_Drip._

Another drop fell on the exact same spot on Sonic's cheek. _Any minute now,_ he thought.

_Drip._

What was going on? Why hadn't the rain started yet? Why was it falling only on his cheek, one drop at a time?

-----

Sonic opened his eyes to find himself in a dark, rocky tunnel. A stalactite was dripping water on his cheek. He had just relived some memories that he hadn't bothered to touch for a long time.

He was surprised to find that he felt nothing but refreshment. Perhaps the dream had served to remind him that those hardships were in the past, and that the only thing that mattered now was the present. He sure didn't feel like dwelling on his missing family again anytime soon.

Sonic picked himself off of the cave floor and decided to follow the draft that was blowing from down the tunnel. A draft had to mean there was a way out of the cave.


	12. The Labyrinth

**The Labyrinth**

Sonic could barely perceive a source of light as he started down the path. Feeling his way along the tunnel wall, he continued until he rounded a sharp corner and discovered the source of illumination.

The light was coming from a plain incandescent bulb that was mounted on the ceiling of the tunnel. Sonic peered ahead and saw that a string of bulbs continued all along the ceiling, lighting the path ahead. Somebody had been down here before. Was this part of the quarry, or had Robotnik discovered it to use for some other purpose? He continued down the tunnel to find out for himself.

Sonic shivered slightly as another draft picked up. The tunnel was nearing its end. He gasped in awe as he exited the tunnel and gazed at his surroundings.

A vast underground chamber sprawled before him. It was rounded in shape and it seemed to stretch out for miles. He lifted his head to see a dark, barely visible rock ceiling high above him. A massive stone pillar stood in the middle of the giant room; to Sonic, it looked as if somebody had picked up a mountain, flipped it upside down, and driven the peak straight into the floor of the chamber, which formed a ring of empty space around the pillar.

Sonic looked down and saw a convoluted network of pathways all over the chamber floor. The entire area was an enormous maze. Incandescent bulbs lined the pathways, but they barely lit the rest of the chamber. Parts of the maze were submerged in black, uninviting water, which reflected the incandescent lights above it.

Intrigued, Sonic pressed in a button on his headset.

"Hey Flora, Paul. You won't believe what I've found here."

Static crackled over the headset. No response ever came.

"Hello, are you there, guys?"

No answer. The headset must not get reception underground. Sonic put it out of his mind and descended into the maze below.

-----

Sonic raced down corridors for what seemed like hours. He had no bearing on time, nor did he have any idea where he was or which way he was headed. All he could do was continue trying pathways until he got somewhere.

He skidded to a halt when a large projectile flew over his head from behind. It landed ahead of him with a grating clang, and he saw that it was a spiked ball. He whirled around to see a spherical robot floating in midair. Three more spiked balls were circling around it, as if being swung around on invisible flails. Printed on the badnik was the name _Orbinaut_.

The Orbinaut swung one of the balls around and launched it at Sonic, who sidestepped the attack effortlessly. The robot launched its next projectile at Sonic's head, but he ducked and the ball overshot him. Finally, the badnik aimed its last missile at Sonic's feet. He jumped into the air as the last ball bounced off of the ground under him. Sonic approached the disarmed robot.

"Where's Robotnik?"

The Orbinaut hovered backward a foot.

"What's wrong? Not so tough without your _balls_?"

The robot turned around and darted away with surprising speed. Sonic gave chase.

"Don't you dare run away from me! Tell me where he is!"

Sonic ran after the fleeing Orbinaut, hopeful that it would lead him straight to Robotnik. He turned a corner to find that he had been tricked.

He skidded to a stop. Crowded into the corridor ahead of him were about fifty Orbinauts.

"Shit," Sonic breathed.

He turned around and dashed off in the other direction. As he looked behind him he saw the Orbinauts in hot pursuit. He rolled into a ball to shorten his height as the entire company launched a volley of spiked balls in his direction.

Harsh metallic clangs resounded and echoed throughout the chamber as the heavy ballistic projectiles clattered down the chamber, some of them missing the spinning hedgehog by mere inches. As they clanged down the corridor ahead of him, Sonic realized that he only had to dodge three more attacks and the entire troop of Orbinauts would be out of ammunition.

A humming noise filled the air as the Orbinauts activated powerful electromagnets under their body plates. Sonic looked ahead in alarm as fifty spiked balls came zooming back down the corridor at him. He jumped, ducked and rolled, hoping against all odds that he would dodge all of the projectiles. After the last one flew past him, he looked back and saw that the Orbinauts had all of their ammunition with them once again.

With a groan, Sonic put on a burst of speed and began to pull away from the Orbinauts. He shot out a hand for the wall so that he could turn a corner, his mind racing as fast as his feet. Sonic continued, not caring about anything except putting enough turns and detours between himself and his pursuers.

After Sonic had traveled a good distance away, he stopped next to a pool in the pathway. Did he dare to risk it? Perhaps, as long as he was just going to hide until he was sure the coast was clear. The troop of fifty would almost certainly split up, so Sonic would be likely to need a good hiding place soon. Putting aside his fear of water, he slipped silently and carefully into the pool, hoping that his disturbance of the water was small enough to be masked by the already shifting surface.

-----

"I don't believe you've told me your name."

"My name is Rotor," Rotor answered.

"Mine is Paul," Paul replied. "Nice to meet you. You seem quite the technical prodigy, Rotor. I admire that. I got a PhD from MIT myself."

"Mobotropolis Institute of Technology? Wow! I've been considering attending there."

"It's a lot of fun, kid. But you seem to know a lot already. Which is why I would love to have your help with this, if you don't mind."

"No problem. Just tell me what you need."

Paul and Rotor were just two out of over three thousand escaped South Islanders camping out in the Marble Hills. The two were working on an improvised shortwave radio constructed from various badnik parts.

"Um, Paul," Rotor responded. "I hope I'm wrong about this, but I heard rumors that we're planning to go into combat against Robotnik. Are we going to try fighting back?"

Paul looked at Rotor as if he was insane.

"Of course we are!" Paul replied. "We're probably already on a death-list. We might as well try to do something about it."

"Umm, when, exactly?"

"As soon as possible, Rotor. Within the next twenty-four hours, hopefully."

"Are you insane??" Rotor hissed. "Robotnik has millions of elite soldiers at his disposal. We have only three thousand civilians here! And that's _total_. Subtract out the children and the physically impaired, and you have even less people who can wield a weapon and fight.

"And we're going to do this within twenty-four hours?? It's suicide, man! You'll be sending thousands of people on a suicide mission! How can we possibly expect to pull this off?"

"Well, if we keep _quiet_, and move _quickly_," Paul argued. "Then we can count on the element of surprise. Robots are incredibly dependent upon their masters. If we can take out Robotnik, the Swatbots won't know what to do. It's all a matter of getting so close to him that by the time he finds us out, it will be too late; we will have already pulled the trigger."

"But don't you think our chances would be better if we waited for Sonic?"

Paul stared down at his silent headset for several seconds.

"Sonic has disappeared. We have no way of knowing if he's still alive. We may have to do without him."

-----

Before Sonic could go back up to see whether or not the danger had passed, a strong current caught him and swept him along the underwater corridor, away from the hole through which he had jumped. It carried him along at a brisk pace, flowing much too fast for him to fight. Despite every urge in his muscles, he decided not to resist; it was very likely that he would run out of air before he could get out again, but at least there was a chance that the tunnel would end soon and he would be able to survive. He knew that if he tried fighting the current, he would never beat it, and the attempt would deplete him of oxygen for sure.

After what seemed like an eternity, Sonic arrived at the bottom of a deep vertical shaft, where the current stopped and deposited him on his feet. On the opposite side of the shaft was a tunnel with a giant propeller mounted in the center, whose sluggish revolutions were just about to stop completely. It must have been a pump that dragged him down here.

Light filtered down from above and Sonic looked up to see the surface of the water. A grimy ladder ran the height of the shaft. Sonic picked up a thin section of pipe lying on the bottom and started up the ladder.

About halfway up, Sonic heard a motor powering up. He looked down to see the propeller turning and felt a current tugging him towards the bottom. He wasn't worried though; as long as he stayed on the ladder, he wouldn't be sucked into the propeller.

Just below the surface, Sonic stuck the pipe out of the water and put one end in his mouth. He used the pipe as a snorkel for a minute or two. When he was sure he was not noticed, he lifted his head cautiously up out of the water.

Sonic now realized that he was inside the giant pillar he had seen. Even the bottom of the funnel-shaped room covered hundreds of yards of area. An enormous hole in the ceiling revealed a black sky above, and Sonic guessed that if not for the lights blazing all over the complex, he would be able to see stars in the sky above. The very edge of a retractable door was visible at a point on the rim of the hole. It was opened so that supplies could be transferred inside easily.

Sonic discerned nine concentric ledges at various levels in the massive chamber. Every last one of them was teeming with Swatbots and lined all around with work stations and computer consoles.

The next thing Sonic noticed was the capsules. The floor and the ledges of the complex were lined with capsules. Every last one of them was marked with the same notice:

_Aquatic Life, Cryogenic Suspension – Do Not Open Above Water_

Sonic realized that the capsules must all hold fish, sharks, and other ocean dwellers, and according to the signs, each capsule held their prisoners in a block of ice.

Next, Sonic turned his attention to the consoles and the machines. On one of the machines, he read: _Badnik Assembly Station: Jaws (J32)_. Sonic noticed that the machines on the higher ledges produced Crabmeat and Chomper badniks.

Sonic sank lower beneath the water as he pondered what he could do to thwart this operation. He would not be able to simply hit every capsule and push every self destruct button in the chamber in time. Where could he even go from here?

Without warning, something hard and metallic clamped shut around his leg. Sonic struggled not to cry out in surprise and fought to stay above the surface without making any noise. But the mysterious grasp tugged at his leg, Sonic's hands slipped off the ladder, and he descended beneath the surface of the pool.

Sonic turned around to see two red and yellow fish-like robots. One of them had Sonic's leg clamped firmly between its gigantic jaw plates. Sonic struggled to swim back up, but the two robots overpowered him and dragged him further down, finally letting go once they had carried him down far enough. Sonic could not fight the current and reach the ladder; he realized with alarm that the robots intended to feed him into the rapidly spinning propeller.

Desperate, Sonic began to flail at his assailants, but the water slowed him down too much to do any damage. He grabbed one robot in each hand and sprawled his hands out far apart. The robots simply raced their motors, carrying Sonic further toward the propeller, as if he was holding on to a pair of miniature aircraft engines. Finally giving in to the resistance from the engines, Sonic brought his hands together, their speed assisted by the motors of the two badniks. The pair of aquatic robots rammed into each other with a crunch, and stopped moving.

Moving quickly, Sonic wrenched open the two shells, freeing the Mobians inside, and then allowed the empty shells to be sucked into the pump by the propeller. The shells got caught and the propeller grated and screeched to a stop.

Relieved, Sonic looked to the surface. He couldn't risk going up there; the Swatbots would be looking for the cause of the pump obstruction. With no other place to go, Sonic decided to venture inside of the pump.

-----

Robotnik sat in his penthouse office, largely satisfied. There was no sign of resistance, Sonic had been taken out by the Swatbots, and, despite the attempt to get away, the foreign heads of state were now securely incarcerated as they awaited roboticization, so the world remained unaware that South Island was now the center of a new empire that grew ever more prepared to launch its takeover of Mobius. Really the only thing bothering Robotnik was that he had not yet heard from the troops he had sent to Cocoa Island, but perhaps there was simply nothing to report. It couldn't be that hard to drive a lone inhabitant off of a tiny island.

Robotnik had decided to put off roboticizing his foreign prisoners; there were too many drawbacks to the badnik assembly process, most notably the ease with which the shell could be broken open and the prisoner set free. No, he was just finalizing a prototype for a new kind of roboticization process.

Robotnik had selected a group of Mobian prisoners to test the new process. He copied the memories and mental networks of all of his subjects and backed them up on his digital archives, so that their brains' natural programming could be preserved. Once he made sure his new machine was ready, he would run his guinea pigs through the machine to see if it worked. If all went well, he would proceed to roboticize the foreigners and the rest of the Mobians as well. And unlike the old process, the effects of the new process would be irreversible.

A red phone on his desk started ringing. He picked it up.

_"Aquatic assembly plant reports a potential emergency. Two 'Jaws' badnik shells were found jammed into the blades of propeller J32. Suspect the presence of an intruder. We request your immediate presence to better direct the investigation process."_

"Aquatic assembly plant, you are read and understood. I will be there as soon as possible."

Doctor Robotnik stepped out of the office and onto the roof. He jumped into his hover craft, which he kept parked on top of the Colossus building. He hovered into the air, and sped off towards the island in the middle of Firestorm Gulf.

-----

Sonic scurried up the water-filled conduit. When he could go no longer without air, he spun around and buzzed straight through the wall of the pipe.

He emerged between two rock walls. Looking around, Sonic saw a lattice of pipes and conduits running between the inner and outer walls of the chamber. He made his way up and over the pipes, climbing higher up the hollow.

High above where he had started, Sonic saw an air duct. It was marked _Primary Control Station._ Grinning, Sonic ducked inside.

The air duct took him even further upwards. Soon he saw light coming up through a vent on the floor of the duct. Sonic peered down into the room. There was only one Swatbot inside.

Sonic positioned his body over the vent and waited for the Swatbot to stand under it. When the time was right, Sonic slammed down on the vent and dropped into the room, spinning. He hit the Swatbot on the top of the head, and it toppled to the ground. It did not get back up.

Sonic looked around the room. He saw a switch for the giant overhead door and emergency override switches for the capsules, the assembly stations, and the drainage pumps. Sonic grinned and chuckled to himself, then set to work.

-----

"Well, well, well," Robotnik mused at the dredged up badnik shells. "It seems we have had a visitor. But whoever it was will have a hell of a time surviving. It is quite likely that the intruder drowned. Have you found a body?"

_"No bodies have been located, sir."_

Without warning, loud pops sounded throughout the chamber as the capsules blew their locks and fell open, exposing the blocks of ice that encased their ocean-dwelling prisoners.

Robotnik whirled around in surprise.

"Only the Primary Control Station has access to all of the capsules! What is that Swatbot doing?"

Robotnik pulled a radio from his robes and called the control station.

"Overseer, report in immediately!"

Robotnik and the Swatbots were thrown off balance as the badnik assembly stations self-destructed violently around them. Loud booms echoed all around. When all was calm, an irate Robotnik confronted the control station.

"Overseer! Explain yourself! You just destroyed every assembly station in the entire aquatic complex! What are you doing??"

A smug voice answered, and Robotnik paled. He should have known.

_"Evening, Robuttnik. Pretty impressive setup you have going here. Well, until a few seconds ago."_

Robotnik ground his teeth.

"I should have known it was you, you spiny blue bastard! You've got a bloody cheek, trashing my facilities and spitting on my rule! I'm afraid your naïve little crusade for freedom ends here. The writing is on the wall."

_"Oh, there's no doubt about that, Lardass. But it's your name that's written on it."_

Robotnik laughed derisively. "Enough of this nonsense! I've got the upper hand here! You have nothing! So don't insult me by even _trying_ to scare me away.

"You, my hated enemy, are cornered. There are three thousand Swatbots in this chamber, all of which are aiming their weapons straight at that control room door. You can't stay in there forever, and the second you walk out, we will vaporize you! You're as good as dead! No more rebellion! It is over and you have lost. Now, why don't you just get it over with and face death like a gentleman?"

_"Well, it is a bit stuffy in here. I believe I will come out after all."_

"I admire your stoicism. Any last words?"

_"I hope you all can swim."_

Robotnik and all of the Swatbots on the floor of the chamber whirled around in surprise as four violent torrents of water flooded the cavern. Sonic had reversed the flow of the drainage pumps and set them to run at full power. Taking advantage of the confusion outside, he opened the doors, ran out, and leapt far out into the air, towards the center of the room.

Some Swatbots fired their weapons at Sonic as he fell, but Sonic had already exploited the turbulence of the flood and thrown off their aim. None of the laser bolts that escaped ever came close to hitting him.

Sonic landed in the slowly rising water on the floor of the chamber. He raced up to Robotnik and grabbed him. Using his momentum, he pushed Robotnik towards a wall and then slid behind him, using Robotnik as a meat shield. The firing stopped momentarily, until Robotnik kicked Sonic out from behind him, allowing the mayhem to resume.

Robotnik darted over to his hover craft and started the engine. He began to hover out of the cavern, leaving the Swatbots to deal with Sonic.

Rising out of the chamber, he flew his hover craft along Starlight Expressway, the long, gigantic bridge that connected the two halves of the city. He descended toward a fueling station that was set up right along the bridge. He told the Swatbot crew what had happened and enlisted their help in setting up a roadblock using barrels of gasoline and tanks of propane. Once the barricade of fuel barrels had been set up across the roadway, Robotnik flew over it and planted a detonator on the other side. If Sonic got too close, the entire barricade would catch fire and make the road impassable. Robotnik flew on to Robotropolis to test out the new roboticizer.

-----

Sonic dashed around, dodging the laser bolts that flew all around him. He had to find a way out. An idea struck him. Sonic got himself ready to run faster than he had ever dared.

He ran towards the wall of the chamber at a blistering speed and jumped up onto the wall, continuing his acceleration. He was going so fast that the centrifugal force was keeping him on the wall.

Sonic kept increasing his speed as he wound his way up the walls of the chamber. He had to go faster as the room got wider. With one last push, he exited the room from the top and left the Swatbots to deal with the rising water.

Sonic looked out and realized that he was on the island that was out in the middle of Firestorm Gulf. The Starlight Expressway ran right through here, and he could take the bridge all the way to Robotropolis. He grinned and took off down the highway.


	13. Emptiness

**Emptiness**

White light cast stark shadows along the walls of the tunnel as Tails made his way beneath Polly Mountain. If he had read the map correctly, this cave would exit into Caron Forest, where he hoped to find another Chaos Emerald. Maybe he would also find weapons there, which were surprisingly absent from most of the island, considering that Cocoa Island had once been a military stronghold.

"Hey, Robbie," Tails started.

The vulpine robot turned to him and tilted its head.

"Where are all of the weapons?"

_"There are no weapons in the immediate area. Suggest you search elsewhere on the island."_

"But don't you see? That's just it," Tails responded. "We've _been_ around most of the island, but we've hardly found any weapons on it. I figured we would find bullets, rifles, tons of explosives, maybe even some nukes. But we've found virtually nothing. I'm just wondering why a military compound wouldn't have any weapons."

_"Technically, this is a defunct military compound. Perhaps most of the weapons were simply moved away after the compound was shut down."_

Tails stopped in his tracks.

"You mean we could be on a wild goose chase?"

_"If conventional weapons are indeed the objective of our searches, then there is a chance that our efforts may be futile. If most of the weapons were removed from the island at an earlier date, then this island may not even have as much armament as the five carriers that surround us. However, we cannot completely rule out the presence of weapons until we have searched all parts of the island."_

"But that could take forev–"

_"However, it could be that the most powerful weapons of all are still on Cocoa Island. In fact, we already have them within our possession."_

The light pulsed brighter for a second, and Tails looked down at the Chaos Emerald.

_"The military's intentions for the Chaos Emeralds are unclear. Information about their research into Chaos energy is very scarce. I suspect that there may still be some documents that have not been released. These circumstances fit the typical characteristics of a top secret weapon. You might very well hold in your hands more power than is released in a nuclear blast."_

"What? I doubt that," Tails answered. "I won't pretend that these gems haven't been pretty helpful, but really, it's all been very trivial and situational. These gems just don't seem to work with the same consistency as, say, a pistol."

_"Consistency is not an issue. Research suggests that Chaos Emeralds give off a special kind of radiation that stimulates a little-known area of the brain. Essentially, Chaos Emeralds seem able to read thoughts and act on them."_

"A psychic weapon?" Tails breathed.

_"Indeed,"_ Robbie responded. _"The aid of the Emeralds seems too specific because it is. The gems adapted themselves to your needs. The green one even served as a storage space for large objects. Imagine what seven such gems could accomplish."_

"If we had all seven," Tails finished. "We would be assured of victory. And we already have five!!"

_"Perhaps the odds are shifting in our favor. But we must hurry. If Robotnik's forces discover the value of the Chaos Emeralds, then they will surely employ every power to take them all."_

"Well, we're not gonna let that happen, are we Robbie?"

_"Not until my binary programming fills with twos. We shall collect all of them. For Mobius. For freedom. For great justice."_

"Yes! Let's get going!"

Tails and Robbie both took to the air and flew off down the tunnel.

-----

The duo exited the tunnel about an hour later. Tails stepped out into a small moonlit clearing that was surrounded by tall trees. Pale lunar light filtered down through the branches, illuminating patches of the forest floor with soft brilliance. The air was very still and the silence was so intense that it rang in Tails's ears. After a moment's gazing, he noticed a wide dirt path that carved its way through the woods.

"That looks like a road!" Tails exclaimed. "Come on, Robbie!"

As they walked hastily down the moonlit dirt road, they passed by several rock formations; they averaged about ten feet in height, but were also very broad and flat. It took Tails a few minutes to realize that they were buildings. He walked up to one and just barely discerned camouflage paint covering the wall of the building. It seemed that he was going to find enough weapons after all.

Tails tugged open the heavy door and stepped into the building. He groped around for a light switch, finding it after a few seconds. Fluorescent strips on the ceiling powered up with a buzz and the harsh light revealed a sparse hallway.

He found a dark staircase after he had searched behind several doors in the hallway. His hands could not find any light switch, so he pulled out the white emerald as he stepped carefully down it. The staircase just didn't seem to end; Tails could only guess how far underground he was. Finally, he arrived at the bottom of the stairs and stepped through the door on the other end.

Tails raised his emerald and concentrated on his need for light. The clear gem threw off a white pulse of light and revealed a tight hallway, narrower than the previous one had been. He and Robbie trod softly down the long, dark hallway, passing several doors that appeared to the left. Tails's curiosity finally got the better of him and he decided to try one of the doors.

A cool draft rolled past him with no more force than a breath. He was standing on a catwalk that ran parallel to the wall and was connected to the hallway via a row of doorways along it. A steel handrail was all that prevented Tails from tripping and plunging off of the catwalk into the pitch black void. Surely the bottom of the pit couldn't be too far below.

"Hey, Robbie, I need you to do me a big favor."

_"Dispense with the courtesy. We may be 'friends' but I am still a robot, and as such am bound by your orders."_

Blowing off the answer, Tails instructed Robbie to hold onto the Chaos Emerald and fly down until it reached the floor of the room. With a soft whir, Robbie took to the air and hovered out past the catwalk.

The light of the emerald followed Robbie's descent, shifting dim shadows across the far walls of the room. A few seconds later, the emerald stopped moving and Robbie let out a robotic chirp, indicating that it had landed.

Relieved, Tails hovered out into space and descended slowly and carefully. When he landed next to Robbie he picked up the white emerald and held it tightly.

"I need light," he thought aloud, eyes closed. "I need light."

The emerald's light grew to a blinding intensity, revealing the stark outlines of stack upon stack of wooden pallets all over the room. Tails took a deep breath and began to explore the strange jungle of crates.

Within less than five minutes, Tails had tripped over his third pallet. This wasn't working. The glare of the Chaos Emerald washed out his peripheral vision and prevented him from seeing properly. But even at this level of brightness, it still was not illuminating the entire room, and every time he moved, the shadows shifted around, throwing off his frame of reference. He looked around once he got his bearings and realized with horror that Robbie had disappeared.

Before Tails could genuinely panic, light appeared way off in the distance as a fluorescent array at the end of the room activated with a loud buzz. More arrays lit up in order, one after another, revealing more and more of the massive room. By the time all of the lights had turned on, Tails could now clearly see the pallet stacks in the room. He turned around when he heard Robbie's rotor spinning a distance away from him. As Robbie returned to him, Tails guessed that the robot had found a way to turn on the lights.

_"You are welcome,"_ Robbie said.

"Thanks."

Tails hovered up over the stacks of pallets and gazed out across the room. Every last stack of wooden pallets was empty. What was going on here?

He spied a small doorway on the other side of the room. Hovering through the vast open space, Tails made for the door to see if he could get through. He gave the heavy door a push, and it swung slowly open with a creak.

Tails turned on the lights and saw a cramped, dingy office. A large computer monitor stood on the desk. Stepping around stacks of yellowed paper folders and documents, Tails seated himself at the desk and looked over the bulky white monitor for a moment. Perhaps it still worked? Curious, Tails bent under the desk and searched the main unit until he found the power button.

The power light activated, and the ancient computer whirred to life a second later. As Tails switched on the monitor, green lines formed a startup logo on the black screen.

"Ovisoft," Tails noted the machine's operating system. "Thank god."

Familiar with Ovisoft, Tails waited until the startup was complete. A list of programs appeared on the screen. He navigated down to a program called "Explorer" and hit the "Enter" key.

A new list appeared on screen, and according to the annotations next to the names, all of the items were folders. Tails scanned the list until he found a name that looked promising. He arrowed down the list and selected "Inventories."

All of the files on the next list that appeared were all named after the dates on which they had been saved. Disappointment hit Tails when he saw that the most recent inventory file was five years old. He decided to open it.

A spreadsheet appeared, weaving a green lattice across the black screen. Tails could see the names of weapons written down in each cell. As he looked over the spreadsheet, he noticed that all but about twenty items had been listed as "relocated." He scrolled back through the list and noted the items that were still on the island:

_Standard Issue Grenades: 1 crate, Rocky Lake Bunker_

Tails thought back to the grenades he had found on the island when he first arrived. There had indeed been a crate of grenades sitting in the basement of his new house. He continued reading:

_Remote Detonated Grenades: 500 Approx, Phlegethon Cavern Cell No. 53_

He must have passed that room on his walk through the caverns that morning. Five hundred small bombs wouldn't be nearly enough to drive off the enemy.

He matched up four more items to the weapons that he had already gathered and stared blankly at the screen for a moment.

"Robotnik is on a wild goose chase," Tails muttered. "There are virtually no weapons left here. We're free!"

_"Do not be so certain,"_ Robbie replied. _"To expect the enemy to believe you would be naivety of the highest degree. They will doubtless keep searching the island until they have obliterated all concealment and exhausted all possible locations."_

"So what can we do?"

_"We must find the two remaining Chaos Emeralds. If your visions can be trusted, then one of the gems should be very near to us."_

Tails scratched his chin for a moment, and then he straightened up as if realizing something.

"I have a theory," he mused, pulling out the white emerald and holding it close to Robbie. "Can you pick up Chaos radiation?"

Robbie froze for a moment as it wrote its sensor readings into its memory.

_"Chaos radiation has been identified. Please stand by. Chaos radiation scanning is now underway."_

Tails waited patiently as Robbie's scanners ticked away, sweeping the area for any traces of Chaos radiation. Without warning, Robbie emitted several shrill chirps and began jumping rapidly.

Robbie stepped quickly across the office and stopped at the foot of one of the bookcases. The diminutive robot took to the air and hovered up towards the middle of the shelf, pausing as if unsure what to do next.

_"There is a switch somewhere on this bookcase. Start tipping books off of the shelves. They are too heavy for me to move."_

Snapping into action, Tails approached the shelf, tilting each thick, heavy book away from the shelf, one at a time. He had reached the third row when, at last, a heavy clunk sounded from the wall and the entire shelf slid sideways into the adjoining wall, revealing the door to a safe behind it.

Tails looked at the safe door. Attached to the heavy slab of metal was a tiny display of numbers. He discerned five zeroes on the display.

_"This safe is protected by a digital combination lock. The combination is only five digits long. There are only one hundred thousand possible combinations. This safe can be opened quite easily."_

Without hesitating, Robbie plugged itself into a socket on the display and set to work. The zero on the far right of the display ticked up from a zero to a one to a two and even further up the number scale within less than a second. The next digit from the right began doing the same at a slower pace as Robbie exhausted the first ten possible combinations. Within just a few moments, the display stopped ticking upwards and beeped.

_"Unlocking complete. Please try the door."_

Tails grasped the handle and pulled back the door of the safe, peering inside at the contents.

A blue Chaos Emerald sat glowing in the very center of the safe, bathing Tails and Robbie in a deep, oceanic ambience. Tails reached in and pulled the Chaos Emerald out of the safe.

"Yes! Just one more to go!" Tails exclaimed. "Let's see where that last one is."

He gazed deep into the gem. The pulsating blue light seemed to transform into a rippling surface, and Tails realized that he was looking at the ocean.

His point of view swooped down until it skimmed the surface of the waves. He recognized the shoreline in the distance as Cocoa Island. The vision turned him so that he now faced a massive ship anchored off the coast. Horrendously large gun turrets adorned the massive vessel. Tails made out a small runway and a few aggressive-looking jets parked on the deck. He swooped down to the other side of the carrier, and the last thing he saw before his vision faded was the name printed on the hull: _Independence_.

Tails turned away from the Chaos Emerald, somewhat overwhelmed.

_"What did you see?"_ Robbie inquired.

"They have it," Tails replied in dismay. "The last Chaos Emerald is in the hands of Robotnik's forces."

Robbie paused for a long time, as if at a loss.

_"This is most unfortunate."_ Robbie deftly understated.

"My god. What should we do now?"

Tails jumped in surprise as a radio console next to the desk crackled to life. He dialed down the volume and tuned it until he heard a voice sound over the speakers:

_"My fellow South Islanders. I hope this message finds enough un-captured people. My name is Flora Butler. I was a school teacher at South Island Elementary School. I broadcast this message in need of your help._

_"I am one of a group of Mobians who managed to escape from Lesser Mobotropolis. We have supplies and weapons and we are currently camping out in the Marble Hills. We are planning to stage an attack against Robotnik late tomorrow afternoon. It is short notice, but we need the element of surprise. If anybody has been wishing for an opportunity to restore freedom and liberty to Mobius, please step forward and join our resistance force. We are over three thousand strong. We will feed you. We will arm you. We will train you. If you ever wanted to do something to make Mobius a better place, now is the time to act._

_"I am afraid we do not know how many troops Robotnik has. It is very likely that we will be defeated and put down. But if we don't seize the opportunity, we will never know if we would have triumphed against Robotnik. Please, put aside your fears and join with us to make one last push for our liberty. Help us, citizens of South Island; you're our only hope."_

Tails stared at the radio after the message had ended.

"It seems we're not alone, Robbie. There are people preparing to fight on South Island."

_"Indeed."_

"You know, since there aren't any weapons left here anyway, this island isn't a threat to the UFM anymore! We can leave now if we wanted to!"

_"Perhaps,"_ Robbie answered. _"But what of that last Chaos Emerald? If the enemy finds out how to make use of them, then all of Mobius could be in terrible danger. If the theories are correct, then the only limit to the power of the gems is the scope of the user's imagination. If the user imagines nothing but death, destruction, and conquest, will it not take but a single Chaos Emerald to bring about such events? The task at hand is a dangerous and difficult one indeed, but we dare not turn our backs to it."_

"When did _you_ develop courage?" Tails jested. "Can we even do this?"

_"The only unknown factor is the reliability of the Chaos Emeralds. If they provide for us when we truly need them, then we have very little cause for worry."_

"Also, how are we even going to get to the _Independence_?"

_"While you were perusing the inventories, I was scanning the floor plans of this complex. There is a monorail tunnel that runs all the way from here to Cocoa Islet, which may contain some means by which to reach the carrier. At any rate, access is much more likely from an island than from underground."_

"That's odd. I thought that Robotnik had taken over Cocoa Islet. Did they not find the supply tunnel?"

_"This is a mystery to me. However, my scans reveal no signs of activity anywhere near our location, so the coast is clear."_

"Well, I guess we better find that supply tunnel then."

_"Follow me."_

Tails followed Robbie out of the office, and the pair hurried across the empty storage chamber in search of the supply tunnel.


	14. Robotnik's Ace

**Robotnik's Ace**

**Ovis Research and Development, Detention Block B6**

Loud, rhythmic footsteps roused the lone prisoner from his fitful sleep. The hedgehog pulled himself up drowsily, shook a lock of hair out of his vision, and blinked, wondering what was going on.

The footsteps stopped right outside of his cell, and he saw two Swatbots when the door swished open. One robot was pointing its laser at him, preventing escape. The other Swatbot pushed two prisoners through the doorway, allowing them to stumble and hit the floor. The door swished closed immediately, leaving the prisoner with two new cell mates.

The prisoner's eyes snapped open as he took another look at the newcomers. He recognized both of them: one was his wife, and the other was his brother.

"Bernie?" he ventured. "Chuck?"

"Jules!" The female hedgehog ran to him and embraced her husband tightly, breaking into tears.

"I missed you so much!"

"So did I, baby," Jules replied, gently stroking her back. "So did I."

Bernie lifted her head and turned to face him.

"You have no idea what they said about you."

"Umm, who exactly are you talking about?" Jules questioned, confused.

"The police! They led me away from home years ago! I had to get Chuck to watch over Sonic for me."

"What?" Chuck spoke up. "How could the police detain you for three years and refuse to release any information?"

"They said that it was because of you, Jules. They said… they said…" she trailed off.

"What did they tell you?" Jules prodded.

"They said that you were the prime suspect in the Central City Airport bomb scare."

Chuck gasped and stared at his brother.

"I was the prime suspect," Jules replied. "But I'm not guilty. I was in the wrong place at the wrong time."

"And they still managed to keep you for three years?"

"Here's what I know happened: after I got off the plane, I needed to use the bathroom, so I put my bags down for a moment and took care of my needs.

"Well, after I left the bathroom, my absentmindedness got the better of me. I decided to explore the airport. It's a massive place, mind you. Large places like that always pique my curiosity.

"Quite a while later, I realized that I should give you a call to let you know that I had arrived in Central City. I got to the pay phone and found that I was out of change. Thankfully, though, they just installed some new kind of phone that can read a credit card and charge it to an account. So I decided to use my credit card, but then I realized that I had left my wallet in my baggage.

"I hurried back to the gate from which I had arrived, but my baggage was gone. So I had no wallet, no credit card, and no personal effects. I went up to the desk to see if they had noticed anything, I gave them my name, and the next thing I knew, I was surrounded by airport security."

"Jules," Bernie said, eyes closed in exasperation. "You're never supposed to leave your bags alone in an airport. That's just asking for trouble."

"I know, honey, I know," Jules replied. "I just wish I could have remembered that.

"Anyway, I got detained and the guards led me to a small room for questioning. They told me that they had my luggage and that they found inside it an explosive device. Naturally, I was flabbergasted. I had no idea what to say. After that, they showed me the credit card and told me that somebody had made a bomb threat, and the call had been paid for via my credit card."

"Did you demand to see the explosive device?" Chuck asked.

"Chuck, I was terrified," Jules answered. "The thought honestly never crossed my mind. And I think my fear was what really did me in. They measured my reactions and decided that I must be up to something. So they moved me to an institution near Station Square that they simply call Prison Island. And they were keeping me there, trying to get a confession out of me."

"How did you finally get out?" Bernie asked.

"Mere days ago, a breakthrough occurred in the case. The guards wouldn't share the details with me, but it cleared my name, and that meant I could return home."

"So, you only got back here a few days ago?"

"My plane was in the air when Colossus was bombed. As soon as we touched down in Mobotropolis, the airport closed and we were all advised to stay where we were. Robotnik rounded us up that evening, and that's how I got here."

"Damn it, man," Chuck responded. "What were the odds?"

Jules nodded at him in agreement.

"Bernie, what happened to you?" Chuck asked.

"Well, after they told me why I was being questioned, I insisted that Jules was innocent. They didn't believe that though, and they were obviously keeping me in custody, hoping that I would give eventually."

"They can't do that!" Chuck exclaimed. "You didn't do anything wrong!"

"The police told me that if any incident poses a major threat to national security, they are allowed to take exception with all suspects involved. So they kept me there, absent from all official records. It was like I didn't even exist.

"Finally, I snapped one day. I thought of Sonic staying at home, with no parents to raise him. They wouldn't let me contact him. It all just made me so furious. So one day, I snapped and lashed out at one of the guards. Now they had a specific reason to keep holding me. They thought I was breaking down, so they didn't want to release me.

"I was still in custody on the day of the attacks. I got shunted straight from the police station to this prison."

"What a mess," Jules murmured. "What a rare stroke of terrible luck."

"Chuck," Bernie asked. "How is Sonic doing? Is he here? Is he alright?"

Chuck twisted a whisker of his graying mustache and looked at the ground.

"I'm sorry, Bernie," Chuck replied. "But I haven't seen Sonic in a year."

Husband and wife both stared at him in surprise.

"I went to the grocery store one night to get more food and refill my prescription. Well, that all went off without a hitch. The problem occurred when I was driving home.

"There must have been some pollen in the air or something, because I was fighting to keep my nose from running all over me. After a few minutes of driving, I just couldn't resist the urge to sneeze. My body must have jerked the steering wheel, because the next thing I knew, I was careening off the road. I'm not sure how fast I was going or how far I got, but it wasn't long before I rammed a tree and blacked out.

"I woke up in a laboratory of some sort. There was no light in the room I was in, but a door opened across the hallway, and I could see flasks and beakers in that room opposite.

"Somebody there noticed that I had come to. He looked really old, and had one of the gauntest faces I had ever seen. He was holding a gun and he looked angry as hell.

"It seems I had stumbled on a meth lab and that in merely straying onto the property I had seen too much. The man held the gun up to my temple and dared me to ask him why he hadn't killed me yet."

"So what did you do?" Jules pressed.

"I asked him. He told me that he had searched my body and found the pills I had bought at the pharmacy. It seems that my meds were a key ingredient in his operation. He told me that if I wanted to keep living, I would give up my ID and do exactly as I was told."

"And you went along with it?" Bernie exclaimed.

"What could I do?" Chuck answered. "Who would have looked after Sonic if I was dead? I had no choice."

"That's another thing," Jules added. "Why didn't you try to contact Sonic?"

"You're kidding me, right, bro?" Chuck replied. "This man had a gun to my head. If he knew about Sonic, your boy would never have had a chance. I made every effort to conceal all connections I had."

"Okay, then. What happened next?"

"For about a year, he would travel to the grocery store and gather my meds, telling the pharmacist that he was doing so on my behalf. He would show them the prescription slip with my signature on it, which he got from me at gunpoint. I couldn't do a damn thing about it.

"Just a few days ago, the police finally made a bust on the place. The mastermind of it all panicked and began to torch the lab. He committed suicide, but I managed to escape before the burning lab exploded."

"So the police finally found you?"

"Oh, they found me alright. I was the sole survivor of a meth lab fire. My claim was that I had been held hostage and that the mastermind had killed himself. But they didn't believe me. They arrested me and charged me with production and distribution of methamphetamine, arson, attempted destruction of evidence, and dishonesty to the police."

Jules and Bernie both winced.

"They may have been heavy charges, but they would have been easy to clear up," Chuck replied. "_If_ Robotnik hadn't stolen power and launched his empire days later."

"So, we all disappeared from home," Jules commented.

"And now we're all back together," Chuck replied.

"Except for Sonic," Bernie answered. "He's been on his own for a full year now. What if he couldn't feed himself? What if Robotnik already got him? I just wish I knew he was okay…"

"Don't worry, baby," Jules reassured her. "I'm positive that he'll be okay. I know from personal experience that Sonic doesn't go down without a fight."

-----

Dr. Robotnik sat in a nearby control room, a wide grin on his face. He had been looking in on a particularly interesting conversation, courtesy of the security cameras in the cells. What spectacular luck! Robotnik had simply chosen a small, random sample of Mobians on which to test the new roboticizer. He never imagined that the sample would include Sonic's very own kith and kin. If only Sonic was aware of that.

Robotnik stroked his chin and thought to himself. What would Sonic be like as a robot? He laughed giddily as he imagined how such a mechanical conversion could amplify Sonic's already immense speed and strength and turn him into an invincible, unstoppable weapon. After all, it had worked with Robotnik; he loved the carbon composite skeleton he had grafted into himself during his days as an Aryan scientist. It was lighter than bone, and yet stronger than titanium. Perhaps Sonic's family could provide Robotnik with enough leverage to get the hedgehog into the roboticizer.

He checked the time and saw that it was time to run the first test. Robotnik rose from the chair and signaled some Swatbot guards to escort the prisoners of Cell Block B6 to the roboticizer.

Soon the prisoners were all gathered in the prison corridor. Robotnik motioned to the door of the chamber.

"It is time for all of you to disrobe; I have decided to grant you all a shower."

Sounds of interest and relief arose among the group of prisoners. They began to remove their clothing, and they entered the giant roboticization chamber en masse. Robotnik closed the door, sealing them inside.

Robotnik had designed the chamber like a shower stall because he needed a pretext to separate his prisoners from their garments; the machine had not been tested, and there was a possibility that adding clothes to the chamber could adversely affect the molecular metal-to-flesh bonding process and damage his specimens.

Robotnik hit a button on a console outside and the process began.

-----

The Mobian prisoners were so numerous that they felt crowded even in the large shower stall. They looked at the nozzles and awaited the water that would cleanse them. It never came.

A hissing noise issued from the shower nozzles. The nozzles released a spray of metal particulate mixed with swarms of microscopic nanobots. The nanobots covered the Mobians and began binding the metal particles to flesh.

The victims near the nozzles coughed violently as they were overcome by the airborne metal particles. Those nearby started to panic and banged on the doors of the chamber, screaming to be let out.

-----

Screams issued from the interior of the roboticizer as the nanobots did their work. They penetrated deep into the skin and bonded a metal molecule to every flesh particle they encountered. They fused bone to titanium, muscle to memory alloy, nerves to wires, and gray matter to silicon.

Robotnik pressed another button on the console. Inside the chamber, gamma lamps hidden in the room emitted deadly doses of radiation that would burn away flesh, leaving behind only the metal structures that the nanobots had copied.

The screaming subsided. Robotnik thought for a minute. So the process destroyed the original body, but that was expected. After all, the prisoners were technically still alive. They still had beating hearts, albeit mechanical ones that now pumped oil. And their original brains may have been destroyed, but Robotnik could easily reinstall the cranial software that he had backed up beforehand. He went into his archives and accessed the database of memories. He matched each one to each prisoner, but he did not restore everything; he installed basic motor skills, instinct, and intelligence, but he left the memories on the hard drive. When he was ready to see the results, he opened the door of the chamber.

Robots filed out of the chamber, staring ahead blankly. Robotnik peered down at them all, watching their exit. Finally he spotted Jules, Bernie, and Chuck. They walked rigidly, mechanically, and emotionlessly. He laughed out loud as he dared to hope that he now had a way to keep Sonic under his thumb.

He had been successful. The new roboticization process worked. So what if it destroyed the original body? He could always restore their cognitive functions to the new body. And he could pick and choose exactly what he wanted them to think. No more of these troublesome memories to deal with. He could just install the bare minimum of mental content and throw out those useless feelings and memories; he cared not for robots with emotions. He decided he would do it soon; he would just wait until after Sonic was dealt with and Cocoa Island was successfully seized.


	15. Road Rage

**Road Rage**

Lieutenant Abraham Tower made his way among the crowd of Mobians camping in the Marble Hills. He was very vital to the resistance force, as he had years of prior military experience.

Devising a feasible attack strategy against Robotropolis had taken him a while. Years ago, he could have written up guerrilla attack plans much faster. He never expected to have to storm the capital city of his own country.

Tower was human, but he had no prejudices against his fellow Mobians. His military service had been in the name of preserving freedom and peace for all creatures; protecting them from people like Robotnik.

Thinking about Robotnik always made him shudder; he had no idea why. From a very young age, Tower had possessed a deep mistrust of the more radical applications of science. He welcomed the information age and believed that, for the most part, technological advancement benefited society. But some studies – roboticization and genetic engineering, for instance – could spiral out of control very easily, in Tower's opinion.

The first step of Tower's plan was to enter Lesser Mobotropolis and secure enough boats for the entire resistance force. They would all sail across the bay under cover of darkness. Upon arriving at Robotropolis' oil docks, the Mobians would infiltrate the city through the subway system. Upon reaching the station under Colossus, the resistance would split into two teams.

Saturn Team was charged with the mission of climbing Colossus and securing Robotnik's office and base of operations on the top floor. If Robotnik was there, the resistance could lock him in and prevent assistance from reaching him, and the Empire would be finished. If not, Tower was quite sure that the office would have surveillance equipment that could be used to track Robotnik's movements.

Tower himself had chosen to lead the team with a much more perilous mission. Genesis Team would continue down the tunnels to the western end of Robotropolis, the location of the extensive research labs. The objective was to destroy the entire complex, or to at least do as much damage as possible. If badniks were merely encapsulated Mobians, freeing them and destroying the laboratories would severely cripple Robotnik's resources and wrest the UFM from his iron grip.

Tower did not like the plan he had devised. He had gone over this plan with several other military elites, and they did not like it either. No matter how many different ways he approached it, attacking Robotropolis would place the resistance force up against impossible odds. He may very well have been leading Genesis Team on a suicide mission. But he and his collaborators agreed on it; any other plan was even less likely to succeed. He stood by his plan with a heavy conscience.

-----

The lieutenant looked around him. Mobians were milling around in uncertainty. Everybody knew by now that they were going to mount an attack in a short while. Some Mobians shivered; some fidgeted around; others cast faraway looks; still others simply sat and stared blankly into space; all were afraid. Tower looked over to see a dog and a walrus manning a radio system. A bullhorn sat next to them. He walked over to them.

"Evening, civvies. Any strange activity around here?"

"Nope. We're golden," Paul replied.

"Good," Tower said, picking up the bullhorn. "I need to make an announcement."

"Good morning," Tower spoke. The bullhorn screeched with feedback.

Tower made a minor adjustment and tried again.

"Good morning."

The crowd of Mobians stopped what they were doing and looked up.

"In less than an hour, we will be moving out across Firestorm Gulf in a fleet of boats. Our goal: to take back Robotropolis and take one last stand against Dr. Robotnik.

"Our resistance force may be smaller than our military, but our resolve, and our cause, is stronger than it has been in centuries. Once again, we are fighting for our freedom; not just from tyranny and totalitarianism, but from roboticization. We are fighting for our right to remain organic, safe from the heartless pull of the cold, soulless machine. It is time now to take up arms and throw off the chains of oppression that our forefathers hacked away at over two hundred years ago.

"Unity is of the utmost importance. If ever there were a time for us all to cast aside our differences and act for the common good, now would be the time to do it. We can no longer afford to quarrel amongst ourselves because of race or species. We must be united to stand any chance of succeeding. If we lose, then it is over; for all of us. We will have no second chances, and Robotnik will not show mercy. But if we win, then we, the ordinary, average citizens of the UFM, will go down in history as the courageous band of rebels who dared to stand up to the evil machine of tyranny and declared in one voice: 'We will not bow to your oppression! We will not conform to your cruel empire!' We are free! We are united! WE ARE MOBIUS!!!"

Applause erupted from the Marble Hills. Tower's speech had not left a dry eye in the entire company. Complete strangers embraced each other on the spot. Tower smiled to himself; if the resistance force wasn't ready now, they never would be.

Everybody had been trained and armed the evening before. Tower and his associates had briefed them all mere hours ago. And now, everybody was fully inspired and steeled for battle. It was now or never. With all weapons locked and loaded, the resistance force left the Marble Hills and made for the docks.

-----

Sonic had not traveled very far when he noticed a gas station on the bridge up ahead. He slowed down when he saw a pile of barrels and tanks blocking the path ahead. Not knowing what to make of it, he walked slowly toward it.

Fifty feet from the pile of barrels, Sonic touched off the tripwire that was connected to the detonator behind the barricade. The ensuing explosion singed his fur and threw him ten feet backwards. He quickly scrambled away from the inferno to escape the heat that already threatened to overcome him.

Sonic looked back at the fire when he was a safe distance away. He wouldn't be able to jump over that; the only way to get past it would be to wait for it to burn out or to go through it. Sonic doubted that he had enough time to wait for the fire to burn out, but he had no idea how he could break the barricade.

In an instant, Sonic remembered seeing semi trucks parked on the island in the gulf. Without hesitation, Sonic raced back to the island to steal a truck.

-----

Sonic cringed when he arrived back at the parking complex; every last vehicle he saw was an _oil tanker_. Cursing, Sonic dashed around the complex looking for a vehicle that didn't have a tank of flammable liquid attached to it. No luck.

A siren sounded from the giant funnel. The compound guard force had finally mobilized, and Swatbots were now on their way out of the cavernous pit to intercept Sonic. Getting desperate, Sonic picked a truck at random and tugged uselessly at the couplings, trying in vain to separate the tank from the truck.

After a few seconds without success, Sonic knew that he had to move now or he would be killed. He opened the door and scaled the giant vehicle, climbing into the driver's seat.

Sonic moved the driver's seat up all the way so that he could reach the pedals. He frantically searched the cab for the keys. Within a few seconds, he found them tucked under the passenger-side mirror. He jammed them into the ignition, and the engine started with a roar.

Sonic floored the accelerator. The engine screamed, but Sonic was not moving forward. He looked down to his right and cringed when he saw a gearshift. Sonic had never learned to drive in manual transmission.

Sonic pushed the gearshift into first, only to meet with resistance. He pushed in the clutch and tried again, and the transmission clicked smoothly into first. He released the parking brake and the truck began to roll backward. Panicking, Sonic slammed the brakes and stopped the truck from rolling.

He took in a deep breath; he would have to let the brake off in order to start moving. Sonic let off the brake and the truck rolled backward again. He pulled the clutch out and pressed down on the accelerator. The truck stopped rolling back and began to move forward. Sonic let the clutch out all the way and pushed the gas even further. The engine dropped in speed for a moment; then it caught the drive shaft and the truck lurched forward.

Even at fifteen miles per hour, the engine was screaming. Sonic pushed the clutch in, the massive truck crunched into second gear, and the engine dropped back to a lower pitch as it reengaged the drive shaft. Sonic pressed in the gas once again and the truck continued its acceleration.

A team of Swatbots had gathered at the entrance to the expressway. One of them was backing another tanker across the entrance, attempting to barricade Sonic from getting through. Shifting up to an even higher gear, Sonic floored the accelerator. His truck barreled forward, ramming aside the Swatbots as if they were insects. He clipped the tank of the other truck at forty miles per hour, but in a big rig, that was enough to demolish a stationary vehicle. The other tank swung to the right, away from Sonic, and pivoted around the coupling with its carrier. The momentum of the tank swung the semi around and the entire mass flipped onto its side with a screech. Having failed to stop Sonic, Swatbot drivers made their ways to more tankers and prepared to give chase.

-----

Sonic had reached sixty miles per hour when he saw the burning barricade up ahead. He started to worry. By the way his truck was handling, he doubted that the giant tank behind was empty. In fact, it felt pretty full. He just hoped that the tank could withstand a few seconds of extreme heat without bursting. If it didn't, he was screwed.

Sonic pushed up to sixty five as he approached the barricade. He braced himself for impact as the burning mass drew ever closer. Forcing himself not to stop, he prepared himself for the worst.

The tanker crashed through the barricade as if it didn't exist. Sonic felt a bump and heard loud crashes. When he looked up, the blackened hulls of still-burning oil barrels were flying through the air away from him. He had broken through. Punching the air in celebration, Sonic shifted up even further and continued to accelerate.

He had not driven far when a horrible stench filled the cabin. Sonic's nose wrinkled at the smell of burning rubber. He could see black smoke rising from just outside. He looked out the window and paled; the barricade had set his tires ablaze.

This was bad. If the tires continued to burn, they would melt soon, Sonic would lose all control of the vehicle, and the tanker would become fused to the pavement. Just as Sonic was wondering what to do, his spirits rose as he saw a lucky break on the road ahead.

The initial explosion that had ignited the barricade had burst a water main some distance down the highway, and now a giant puddle had formed in the road. Sighing with relief, Sonic headed straight for the puddle to extinguish his burning tires.

Sonic went rigid as the entire control situation changed. He had plowed into the puddle at over sixty miles per hour; the water could not displace fast enough and as the burning tires went out, the wheels left the pavement and skimmed the surface of the water. They spun rapidly, unable to catch the road and provide traction. Sonic was hydroplaning.

He panicked as the truck ceased to respond to the steering wheel and the accelerator. Sonic could tell by feel alone that he was not rolling; he was sliding across the water, unable to stop or change direction. He felt a tug and the cab of the truck turned slightly to the right. Sonic looked out of his side view mirror; the tank behind him was taking a direction of its own, swiveling to the left and threatening to flip his vehicle over.

With a jerk, the tanker reached the other end of the puddle, and the tires found pavement once again. The spinning wheels caught the pavement and Sonic straightened out and gunned the engine, relieved that he had made it.

-----

Sonic was passing an on-ramp at high speed when he saw a group of Swatbots gathered some distance ahead of him. He was wondering what they were up to when without warning, a humongous object rammed him from the right. He looked over to see another oil tanker that had entered the expressway; a Swatbot was behind the wheel.

The attacking Swatbot twisted the wheel and rammed Sonic once again. Sonic responded in kind by gunning the engine and smashing his own vehicle into the Swatbot's tanker. With a forceful burst of power, Sonic caught the other driver off guard and succeeded in pushing the tanker into the wall. The cab of the Swatbot's tanker bounced up a foot, crushed between Sonic's vehicle and the concrete wall. The hood popped off, exposing the engine beneath, and the Swatbot's tanker ground to an abrupt halt.

Sonic accelerated ahead of the wrecked tanker; his triumph was short-lived. As he turned to look ahead, he saw the Swatbots ahead of him aiming lasers at his truck. Panicking, Sonic jerked the steering wheel hard to the left, floored the accelerator, and crashed through the wall on the opposite side of the expressway just before the Swatbots fired.

The Swatbots had been aiming for Sonic's truck when it was still in front of the wrecked tanker. He had made a sharp left before they could correct their aim; the bolts of energy ripped through the tank of the wrecked truck, igniting tons of oil stored inside. A gigantic yellow fireball blossomed out of the tank, engulfing and melting everything within seventy feet of the blast. As the oil clouds faded from orange to red to black, the shockwave reached the Swatbots and rocked the entire company.

-----

Sonic was surprised when he hit a lower road with a bone-jarring crash. Miraculously, the tank had not exploded, the engine was still running, and the tires and frame had withstood the impact. He jumped in his seat; red bolts of laser energy shot past him and he realized that Swatbots were patrolling this road as well. Not hesitating, he accelerated away from the pursuing tankers.

He was on an old, poorly lit road. It had been the roadway between the two halves of Mobotropolis before the construction of the Starlight Expressway. He was entering a particularly hazardous section of the road, a section that had been abandoned in construction because of gross engineering errors. At one particular point, the highway construction firm had intended to build a section of road from opposite ends and to have them meet at the halfway point. Unfortunately, the two sections of road were severely misaligned; each end was offset a full road width to the right of the other one. Not knowing how to fix this problem, the construction firm simply built a vertical loop in desperation. It successfully connected the two ends, but served no practical purpose. Eventually, the city simply built a new route and left the loop to stand; the road had never been opened for travel.

Sonic could not believe his eyes. Looming ahead of him, at the bottom of the next hill, was a giant vertical loop. It arced up and over, defying every rule of highway construction. He looked at the Swatbots behind him and sighed in exasperation. Then he shifted up into a high gear, let out a yell, and accelerated down the hill.

He looked down at the speedometer. He was approaching ninety miles per hour. Hoping he could make it past the loop, Sonic pushed down even harder on the gas pedal. Soon he was at the bottom of the hill, the giant loop rushing ever closer.

As his tanker entered the loop, the centrifugal force pushed Sonic into his seat. Speed was essential; he had to keep his foot on the pedal or he would certainly fall to his death. As he passed the top of the loop, the centrifugal force started to fade and Sonic fought to keep gravity from pulling his foot away from the accelerator. Within a second, Sonic was in vertical descent, and shortly after that the grade lessened and leveled out. He had made it over the loop.

Sonic looked back with satisfaction as the two trucks pursuing him piled up at the foot of the loop. He celebrated for a moment before turning his eyes to the road once again.

"Oh, hell no…"

A section of road was missing up ahead. The pavement rose up on the right side of the road and banked to the left. On the other side was another makeshift ramp on the left side of the road that twisted to the right. Wondering if he was insane, Sonic accelerated and steered for the twisting rise in the pavement.

The tanker launched off of the twisted ramp and rolled to its left. Sonic became weightless as the giant truck flipped upside down in the air. Finally, the truck's wheels, after having flipped above the truck, came down on the other side and touched the ramp of the opposite section of road. Sonic had barrel-rolled over the gap.

Trying hard to keep his wits about him, Sonic took the right path of an upcoming fork in the old highway. As he traveled along, he noticed that the road was going to end. Fortunately, the expressway was right in front of the end of this road. He could simply keep driving and he would end up back on the expressway. Grinning, he floored the accelerator and motored up the incomplete on-ramp.

-----

Swatbot snipers camped out on a section of the old highway that ran below Starlight. They were situated below and to the left of the expressway, next to a right bend in the road. They had heard reports that Sonic was powering up an unfinished on-ramp on the other side of the expressway, and the on-ramp led right up this bend. They had calculated that if Sonic acted as lead-footed as he had before, he would launch off of the ramp and be unable to steer away from the edge. When he crashed through the opposite wall, the Swatbots would open fire and fry the hedgehog. They adjusted their sights and kept a patient watch over the wall.

-----

A thought struck Sonic as he traveled up the ramp; it appeared that the expressway was at an angle to the on-ramp. If Sonic drove too fast, he could overshoot the road and crash right back over the edge. But he didn't want to risk going too slow either; without enough momentum, he would not make it over. Thinking quickly, he slid to the left of the on-ramp. When he was in position, he angled the tanker to the right, twisted the steering wheel hard to the left, downshifted to a low gear, and floored the accelerator.

The tires screeched as Sonic's tanker skidded up the ramp at an angle. Sonic guessed that the tanker was roughly parallel to the expressway now. As he neared the main highway, he applied gas. The truck's trajectory shifted slightly. He hoped he had timed this right.

Sonic left the ramp and took to the air. The highway slid past below him. As he looked over to his left, he saw another tanker directly in his path. Unable to stop or change direction, Sonic braced for impact as the two tankers continued on their collision course.

Sonic's wheels slammed into the right side of the other tanker. As the tanker flipped to the left, Sonic's truck righted itself and launched off of the unfortunate vehicle, landing squarely on the road and continuing ahead.

The other tanker lost control and flipped onto its left side. Still reeling from the impact of Sonic's vehicle, the tanker slid across the road and broke through the barrier, flying out over the dark waters of Firestorm Gulf.

The Swatbot driver did not have long to fall. The snipers below the road saw the tanker crash through the barrier. Instinctively, they opened fire on the falling tanker. An enormous explosion ripped open the oil tank, exposing every last gallon of oil to heat and oxygen. The burning clouds consumed the truck, and within seconds, hundreds of burning truck parts rained down into the gulf.

-----

Sonic exited the Expressway and hit the streets of Robotropolis. If he hurried, he could make it all the way to the other side of the city before he was intercepted. He floored the accelerator and sped the giant tanker down the city roads.

At eighty miles per hour, city blocks and streetlights streaked past Sonic as he blasted down the road. He paid no heed to the traffic lights, either swerving around or clipping vehicles in his way. Swatbot drivers honked at him, unable to figure out why any robot would drive so erratically. Leaving them far behind, Sonic gunned the engine as the road began to slope downhill.

Fear gripped Sonic as he saw the bottom of the hill. He was approaching a three-way intersection. Directly across the intersecting road was a gas station, set into another hill up ahead. Sonic had roughly ten seconds to avoid hitting it.

Sonic slammed the brake pedal. The truck decelerated for a moment, but the brakes locked, and the truck picked up speed. Panicking, Sonic unbuckled his seatbelt and opened the door. He jumped out of the cab and rolled on the road, leaving the tanker to continue on its collision course with the gas station.

Without a driver to steer it, the tanker veered to the right, clipped a nearby lamppost, and lost control. The right side mirror broke off, but the impact had already swung the cab ever so slightly to the right. The wheels caught the road and the cab snapped to the right, swinging the tank out to the left. The truck's tires squealed against the pavement and the tanker flipped over and continued rolling down the hill. The road scraped a hole in the tank, and the escaping oil caught fire from the sparks thrown up as the tank slid down across the pavement. Sonic watched as the truck reached the gas station.

The tanker demolished two gas pumps, crumpling the stands and causing gasoline to spew unchecked from the underground fuel reservoirs. The sprays soon found the flames from the tanker, and fountains of gasoline became jets of flame. As the tanker crashed through the building and hit the wall opposite, its oil tank cracked open, and the rest of the oil inside exploded as it rushed out of the tank and found the flames outside. The force of the explosion blew out the roof and set the walls ablaze.

The impact and the heat from the explosion tore fissures in the parking lot of the gas station. As the temperature began to rise, the flames from the gas pumps grew hotter and more intense. With a loud crack, one of the underground reservoirs split open, spewing even more gasoline into the air and exposing the rest of the tank to the oxygen.

The parking lot erupted in a massive conflagration as the entire store of gasoline found oxygen and ignited. Hot, billowing, fiery orange clouds consumed the entire block. As the initial gas clouds cooled and faded into black smoke, Sonic could see a little bit more of the ruins. Metal and pavement had melted into indistinguishable masses of slag.

Sonic wasted no more time. He fled the scene, making sure to avoid the unbearably hot vicinity of ground zero. Once he had passed the smoldering gas station, he continued west, approaching Robotnik's dreaded research labs, the very engines of tyranny.


End file.
